Yang Kai was thought to be trapped in the Universe Furnace and there had been no contact from him for over 600 years, so whether he was alive or dead was unknown. This was undoubtedly a blow to the Human Race, especially with the ongoing war between them and the Black Ink Clan. While there were a few Ninth-Order Masters among the Human Race now, none of them had the total suppressive advantages over the Pseudo-Royal Lords in battles, not even the veterans like Xiao Xiao and Wu Qing.
In Mi Jing Lun’s understanding, the only one who could possibly achieve this was Yang Kai! Back when the Black Ink Clan was holding their ground in the Great Territory Battlefields, the war would not have been this difficult if Yang Kai was around.
Mi Jing Lun originally thought that he might have to wait until the next opening of the Universe Furnace for Yang Kai to have a chance to escape, but unexpectedly, he appeared before him right at this moment.
Mi Jing Lun was extremely surprised and couldn’t help but ask, “How did you escape from the Universe Furnace?”
“Universe Furnace?” Yang Kai was taken aback at first but quickly realised that Mi Jing Lun must have misunderstood something. It was understandable since he had been out of contact for so many years, so the logical assumption was that he was trapped in the Universe Furnace.
He couldn’t hold back his laughter as he explained, “I wasn’t trapped in the Universe Furnace. Rather, it took me to the edge of the Universe, and I had to spend quite some time returning.”
“The edge of the Universe?” Mi Jing Lun looked puzzled.
“It’s a long story,” Yang Kai waved his hand, not wanting to talk about it as the war between the two Races was the more crucial issue now. Even if others knew the Universe Furnace created all Universe Worlds from Chaos, it was of no use to them. It could at most broaden their horizons, but hearing about it second-hand was not nearly as shocking as witnessing it personally.
Though Mi Jing Lun didn’t ask any further, he had doubts in his mind. Where exactly was the edge of the Universe, and how far away must it have been for Yang Kai to take hundreds of years to return even with his abilities?
After composing himself, Mi Jing Lun said, “You’re back just in time. There are some things that I need you to do.”
He and many of his staff members were discussing a battle in a certain Great Territory that was in a worrying state as they didn’t have enough manpower to mobilize to support it. As such, Yang Kai’s return was quite timely.
Yang Kai nodded and said, “Just give me the order, Senior Brother.”
“Come inside and we’ll talk,” Mi Jing Lun held Yang Kai’s arm and led him into the Main Hall.
After a while, everyone took their seats.
“Let me tell you about the current war situation,” Mi Ling Jun spoke.
Yang Kai nodded, as he urgently needed to understand what was going on right now. The two sides had been at war since the Universe Furnace appeared, and it had been over 600 years since its closure. Yang Kai had no idea how the war had progressed during this time, or what the situation was like currently.
He did ask Zhan Wu Hen before, but the latter’s understanding was not comprehensive enough so they did not talk about it in detail.
Naturally, the Supreme Headquarters had the most in-depth understanding of the situation.
Mi Jing Lun then gave a brief account of the hundreds of years of war.
It was only now that Yang Kai learned that the Human Race had regained not just the dozen or so original Great Territory Battlefields, but an additional 200 or so Great Territories.
However, Yang Kai immediately felt that something was wrong. Even if the Human Race had produced several Ninth-Order Masters and many Eighth-Order Masters in the Universe Furnace, increasing their strength greatly, that shouldn’t have been sufficient to produce such outstanding results.
With his previous understanding of the Black Ink Clan’s background and forces, Yang Kai initially believed that the battle between the two sides would still be raging on the various Great Territory Battlefields. After all, the Black Ink Clan must now have dozens of Pseudo-Royal Lords, so it should have been impossible to reclaim so many Great Territories even though there were quite a number of Ninth-Order Masters in the Human Race.
Yang Kai didn’t understand until he heard Mi Jing Lun mention Mo Na Ye.
The Black Ink Clan retreated to advance, lengthening the Human Race’s battle lines and dispersing their Army’s strength. Losing 200 or so Great Territories was not a significant detriment to the Black Ink Clan while the Human Race Army had to leave some troops behind to defend these places in order to prevent the Black Ink Clan from reoccupying them and cutting off the front lines from the rear.
This was open intrigue by the Black Ink Clan, but Mi Jing Lun could do nothing even if he saw through their intentions. As a result, he could only try his best to keep the various Human Race Armies steady and not reveal any vulnerabilities.
Over the years, the Black Ink Clan had taken many actions against the recovered Great Territories; however, they were mostly minor skirmishes that did not make much of an impact and were ultimately quashed by the stationed soldiers.
Mi Jing Lun also informed Yang Kai that Xiao Xiao and Wu Qing were finally freed, and his hidden hand had been played. In the Barren Territory, four Giant Spirit Gods were currently engaged in a brutal deathmatch.
This was not surprising to Yang Kai. The Black Ink Clan couldn’t keep their trapped Black Ink Giant Spirit God unused. For them, the power that the Black Ink Giant Spirit God provided was simply too great.
So, once the two sides went to war, the Black Ink Clan would find a way to release their trapped deity. Xiao Xiao and Wu Qing’s strength was not enough to restrain a Master of that calibre, but the hidden hand that Yang Kai left behind happened to be able to counter it.
“Speaking of which, the great battle in the Barren Territory has caused quite a lot of trouble for the Black Ink Clan.” A grin appeared on Mi Jing Lun’s face, “Since the Black Ink Clan captured the No-Return Pass, that place has been their foundation. In the past, the Black Ink Clan had a large number of troops and resources transported from the No-Return Pass to the frontlines on a near-daily basis, but now that the great battle of four Giant Spirit Gods has affected the entire Barren Territory, the troops passing through that area often suffer losses from the fallout. Although it’s not a significant attrition, in recent years, the Black Ink Clan has lost at least 20% of their troops in the Barren Territory, which has eased some of the pressure on us.”
Yang Kai couldn’t help but raise his brow, “There’s such a fortunate event?”
He didn’t expect this turn of events. Initially, he only wanted to leave Ah Da to deal with the trapped Black Ink Giant Spirit God; however, now he realised that he had stumbled into some additional good fortune.
It made sense once he thought about it, though. The battle between Giant Spirit Gods was Heaven-shaking and Earth-destroying, and as the Black Ink Clan’s Army set out from the No-Return Pass, they would inevitably have to pass through the Barren Territory. Anyone caught in the aftermath of such a battle would definitely not have a good end.
It was only natural that the Black Ink Clan were troubled by this, but since it was a Giant Spirit Gods’ battle, it was doubtful anyone could intervene.
Now, the Human Race had 12 main Armies, but only six of them had a Ninth-Order Master leading them. Luo Ting He led the Azure Sun Army, Xiang Shan the Blood Flame Army, Ou Yang Lie the Profound Nether Army, Wei Jun Yang the Lang Ya Army, Xiao Xiao the Soaring Cloud Army, and Wu Qing the Purple Feather Army. The remaining six Armies were Shocking Thunder, Red Flame, Burning Moon, Twin Instrument, Azure Dawn, and Jade Cicada.
“Although I had dispatched many Divine Spirits to assist the latter six Armies, they are still lacking in comparison to the others, especially the Red Flame Army, which is now in a standoff with the Black Ink Clan in the E-5 Great Territory.”
Saying so, Mi Jing Lun pointed his finger casually, and the huge Universe Chart in front of him suddenly expanded, presenting a map of the void with the E-5 Great Territory on it.
Not every Great Territory in the 3,000 Great Territories had a distinct namesake. Just like High Heaven Territory, it used to only have a code name because there were no powerful Sects present, nor did the people inside have the ability to break free from the constraints of their Universe Worlds. It was not until the Star Boundary rose to fame, and because Yang Kai was from it, that the Territory hosting the Star Boundary was re-named High Heaven Territory.
Similarly, the New Great Territory was also just a code name in the Universe Chart. However, the Myriad Monsters World in the New Great Territory now had the qualifications to represent it. Perhaps in the future, when the Universe Chart was updated, the New Great Territory would be christened the Myriad Monsters Territory.
Only when a Great Territory had a powerful Great Force as a hegemon would it be named after that force.
E-5 Territory was a barren Great Territory. Although there were a few Universe Worlds, there were no Second Class Great Forces. The cultivation of the top Masters in the few Universe Worlds there was not even comparable to that of the Star Boundary in its early years.
Back when the Black Ink Clan invaded E-5 Territory, the living beings in those few Universe Worlds were almost all butchered. Now, the Red Flame Army had arrived and was fighting for control of this Great Territory while the Black Ink Clan was deploying their troops to resist.
Looking at the Universe Chart, red and black light occupied roughly half of the Territory each. The red represented the Red Flame Army, and the black represented the Black Ink Clan.
“The Black Ink Clan has clearly been waiting for this moment after giving up so many Great Territories. We suspect they are preparing a full counterattack against the Red Flame Army. In recent years, the Black Ink Clan has been mobilising their Masters to E-5 Territory, and in the last war, the Red Flame Army was already having a difficult time holding on while suffering many casualties. If we continue like this, without more support, the Red Flame Army won’t hold on for much longer.”
Yang Kai nodded lightly and asked, “Senior Brother Mi, do you want me to assume command of the Red Flame Army?”
Mi Jing Lun nodded, “Originally, we planned to retreat from E-5 and re-distribute the Red Flame Army into the other 11 if we couldn’t hold on. But since you’re back, it would be better to hand the Red Flame Army over to you.”
After Yang Kai pondered about it for a moment, he said, “I don’t have any objections, but I have some ideas of my own.”
Mi Jing Lun gestured for him to continue, “Please share.”
“When I led Profound Nether in Profound Nether Territory, there were no Black Ink Clansmen who dared to cause trouble. If I take over the Red Flame Army, obviously the Black Ink Clan won’t dare to provoke us anymore. In this way, wherever Red Flame goes, the Black Ink Clan will surely retreat and avoid it. Even so, if we can’t kill more Black Ink Clan Masters, it would be meaningless to occupy more Great Territories.”
Mi Jing Lun nodded and responded, “Our goal now is to kill, especially the Pseudo-Royal Lords. The number of Pseudo-Royal Lords is limited, so if we can kill enough of them, they won’t have the capital to fight us anymore.”
“If that’s the case, it would be better for me to act alone.”
Mi Jing Lun was momentarily taken aback before considering carefully and then nodded, “That’s true.”
Yang Kai taking command of the Red Flame Army would undoubtedly allow it to soar like a Dragon diving into the sea, leaving the Black Ink Clan no room to act recklessly in front of them. However, managing an Army would also be a drag on Yang Kai. If he acted alone, it would undoubtedly be more convenient. Unlike the other Ninth-Order Masters, Yang Kai was proficient in Dao of Space, so even if he travelled from one battlefield to the next, the amount of time spent in transit would actually be quite small.
As the two conversed, the rest of the staff sat quietly to the side, listening in amazement.
Among the numerous Ninth-Order Masters, the person in front of them was probably the only one who could laugh and treat the Black Ink Clan as if they were insignificant. But, everyone knew that this was not arrogance but extreme self-confidence.
In the Main Conference Hall, Mi Jing Lun looked at Yang Kai with a hint of apology, “I know it’s been tough for you to rush around, but we don’t have much time to spare. We’re counting on you to take care of the Red Flame Army’s situation.”
Yang Kai chuckled, “I haven’t been in a fight for so many years. It’s time to go and stretch my muscles.”
As he spoke, he stood up and walked out. When he reached the door, he suddenly threw something back that flew straight towards Mi Jing Lun.
Mi Jing Lun caught it as he heard Yang Kai say, “I brought a small gift for Senior Brother. Please accept it.”
By the time he looked up, Yang Kai had already disappeared.
Watching Yang Kai leave, the staff members, who had been anxious for a long time, finally breathed a sigh of relief. Since Yang Kai had returned and was headed towards the E-5 Territory, it was quite likely that things there would soon be under control.
On the other hand, the Black Ink Clan had no idea that he had returned, and they would surely suffer a big loss once caught off guard.
“Supreme Commander Mi, since Sir Yang has returned, why not gather all the Ninth-Order Masters and directly attack the No-Return Pass?” Someone suggested.
The Black Ink Clan’s advantage lay not only in the number of Pseudo-Royal Lords, but also in the steady stream of troops. As long as they had enough Black Ink Nests and supplies, they could continually spawn large Armies.
If they attacked the No-Return Pass and destroyed the High-Rank Black Ink Nests, they could completely cut off the Black Ink Clan’s supply of troops. Then the pressure on the Human Race would be greatly reduced.
Currently, the Black Ink Clan Army seemed endless, but without the Black Ink Nests, they would eventually be eradicated completely.
Roughly 500 years ago, the Humans had attempted this, but at that time, there were only four Ninth-Order Masters and unfortunately, the Black Ink Clan was on guard, so the attempt failed.
But now, with Yang Kai’s return, there were seven Ninth-Order Masters in total, almost twice as many as before. If they made another attempt, there was a high chance of success.
Mi Jing Lun held the box tightly and shook his head, “It’s too risky. Even if it succeeds, we may not be able to destroy all the High-Rank Black Ink Nests. If we can’t cut off the roots once and for all, this move would be meaningless and would only put all the Armies at unnecessary risk.”
Today was different from the past. The 12 Armies of the Human Race were all fighting far from the rear lines and from each other, and the Black Ink Clan had their own countermeasures in place. If the Ninth-Order Masters suddenly disappeared, the Black Ink Clan would surely take advantage of the situation. Without the Ninth-Order Masters’ assuming command, the previously evenly matched situation could strongly tilt in the Black Ink Clan’s favour. By that time, the Human Race would undoubtedly suffer countless deaths and injuries, and the previously accumulated achievements might all be lost at once.
The staff member who spoke thought about it and then nodded lightly, “What Supreme Commander Mi said is true. I was thinking too simply.”
“At present, the situation of the two Races is such that our Human Race can only steadily fight while not showing any openings to the Black Ink Clan. You must all remember this,” Mi Jing Lun replied.
“Yes,” everyone responded in unison.
Mi Jing Lun withdrew his gaze and casually opened the box that Yang Kai threw to him before leaving. Since Yang Kai said it was a small gift he had brought back, Mi Jing Lun didn’t give it much thought, but the moment he opened the box, his expression froze stiff.
Not only him, but all the other Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters in the Main Hall were instantly attracted to the object in the box.
Lying in the box was a multi-coloured light pill, with a wondrous aura emanating from it that made both Mi Jing Lun and the Eighth-Order staff feel as if the bottlenecks that had bound them for millennia were showing signs of loosening.
Although they had never seen this kind of pill before, the Eighth-Order Masters who felt the abnormality at this moment recognised its origin at a glance.
“A Supreme Grade Open Heaven Pill!” Someone exclaimed.
Mi Jing Lun became even more shocked as the words passed through his ears.
[The ‘small gift’ Yang Kai brought back is actually a Supreme Grade Open Heaven Pill?] He couldn’t believe his eyes.
But only something like the mysterious energy of such a pill could loosen the shackles of an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Master; in this world, there was probably nothing else that could do this except for a Supreme Grade Open Heaven Pill.
This was a priceless treasure that all peak Eighth-Order Masters dreamed of. It was an opportunity to break through the shackles of the Open Heaven Realm Method. This Spirit Pill also represented the birth of a Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master!
With Mi Jing Lun’s many years of accumulation and heritage, if he were to refine it, he would surely advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm in short order.
Instantly, Mi Jing Lun understood.
This Supreme Grade Open Heaven Pill was probably snatched by Yang Kai from the Chaos Spirit King.
Years ago, he had talked to many Masters who had returned from the Universe Furnace to find out about Yang Kai’s whereabouts.
Some had reported feeling Yang Kai’s aura from afar, but also that he disappeared quickly. It seemed that Yang Kai was being chased by the Chaos Spirit King at that time.
At that time, Mi Jing Lun speculated that Yang Kai had probably gone to trouble the Chaos Spirit King again and snatch the Supreme Grade Open Heaven Pill he lost in the great battle against the Black Ink Clan. However, as Yang Kai had been missing for so many years, there was no way to verify this.
It wasn’t until now, with the Spirit Pill in his hand as proof, that Mi Jing Lun’s guess was confirmed; Yang Kai had indeed snatched the Spirit Pill back. No wonder the Chaos Spirit King had been chasing after him all that time.
Encountering Yang Kai was bad luck for the Chaos Spirit King, who had to fight for the Spirit Pill several times.
Gently closing the wooden box in his hand, Mi Jing Lun momentarily pondered before saying, “I need to enter retreat for a while. You guys can handle things here on your own. If it’s not an emergency, feel free to consult amongst yourselves.”
The others nodded in agreement.
After that, Mi Jing Lun stepped out of the Main Hall, holding the box tightly in his hand.
At present, there were many Masters at the peak of the Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm, many of whom had made great contributions to the Human Race on the battlefield. These individuals were commendable, having risked their lives for the greater cause. They too required Supreme Grade Open Heaven Pills to break through their current bottlenecks; however, there was only one pill.
Mi Jing Lun was not a selfish person. If it were peacetime, he might not have cared about the Spirit Pill because he was not someone who was obsessed with reaching the Ninth Order.
But this was war! He was the Supreme Commander of the Human Race’s 12 Armies. These Armies had made continuous progress over the past 600 years, reclaiming more than 200 Great Territories. However, with such a long and distant front line, it was no longer appropriate to have the Supreme Headquarters set up in this location; after all, feedback from the front lines couldn’t be timely, and would often affect decision-making and responses.
Mi Jing Lun had also thought about relocating the Supreme Headquarters to a position closer to the battlefield, but he didn’t dare to do so because he was only an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master, and the number of people left behind at the Supreme Headquarters was not enough to deal with a surprise attack if led by Pseudo-Royal Lords or Royal Lords.
If the Black Ink Clan found the location of the Supreme Headquarters and launched an attack, it would be disastrous.
Mi Jing Lun’s death alone wouldn’t matter much, but if the Supreme Headquarters was wiped out, it would definitely affect the morale of the Human Race Army. Without the central coordination of the Supreme Headquarters, the various Armies would also not be able to coordinate with one another.
In terms of information transmission, the Humans were not as efficient and fast compared to the Black Ink Clan. So, losing the Supreme Headquarters would be extremely detrimental to the overall situation.
Mi Jing Lun knew that if he could advance to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, all his past plans could be put into action. The Supreme Headquarters could be deployed towards the direction of the battlefield and receive frontline information in a more timely manner.
When he saw the Spirit Pill, Mi Jing Lun hesitated for a moment but ultimately decided to use it to break through to the Ninth Order.
After Mi Jing Lun left, the group of staff members gradually regained their calm. Although they might never have the chance to reach the Ninth Order, and the Supreme Grade Open Heaven Pill would not be for them, they couldn’t help but feel happy that another Ninth-Order Master was soon to be born in the Human Race.
An Eighth-Order Master spoke in a low voice, “Supreme Commander Mi’s breakthrough is classified information and should not be leaked under any circumstances.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
The Black Ink Clan now had a thorough understanding of the Human Race, with six Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters leading six Armies. Keeping in mind that they were probably unaware of Yang Kai’s return, it wouldn’t be long before the E-5 Territory plunged into a reign of terror.
If Mi Jing Lun were to break through to the Ninth-Order Realm, the Human Race would have a total of eight Ninth-Order Masters, so concealing Mi Jing Lun’s breakthrough could potentially be used to their advantage in the future. Everyone here was smart enough to understand this.
It was tacit even if Mi Jing Lun did not give any orders about it.
…..
The E-5 Territory was a Great Territory with a designated code rather than a name. It had always been barren, with only a few Universe Worlds with Martial Daos even inferior to the Star Boundary before it flourished.
Despite its lack of distinction, there were still quite a number of such Great Territories in the 3,000 Worlds.
When the Black Ink Clan invaded the 3,000 Worlds, they effortlessly took over this Great Territory, and the living beings on the few Universe Worlds here had no idea what had happened, falling victim to the disaster.
After capturing this Great Territory, the Black Ink Clan did not leave too many forces here, as neither they nor the Human Race paid much attention to such a Great Territory.
However, 10 years ago, the E-5 Territory had become the battlefield where the Red Flame Army and the Black Ink Clan fought.
As Mi Jing Lun said, over the years, the Black Ink Clan had intentionally and unintentionally abandoned more than 200 Great Territories, forcing the Humans to extend their battle lines, which gave them a chance to strike at the Red Flame Army.
Retreating at the right time would not be considered a failure; but rather, a forward-thinking plan to make for a better counterattack. Under the leadership of Mo Na Ye, despite losing many Great Territories and some troops, the Black Ink Clan’s top combat power was well-preserved.
The string of losses had caused the Black Ink Clan’s anger to boil for hundreds of years, and once this kind of anger erupted, it would be unstoppable. As long as they could defeat the Red Flame Army, the Black Ink Clan’s years of forbearance would be worthwhile. That was why Black Ink Clan was determined to win this war.
The reason why they chose the Red Flame Army was because it did not have a Ninth-Order Master leading it, making them easier to deal with. There were only a few Ninth-Order Masters, but the Humans were divided into 12 Armies, making it impossible for each one to have a Ninth-Order Master.
In the E-5 Territory, a massive battle was in full swing.
More than a decade ago, the Red Flame Army had been on a winning streak, liberating numerous Great Territories one after another, until they advanced into the E-5 Territory where the Black Ink Clan had long made their preparations, resulting in the two great Armies engaging in a fierce struggle in the vast and boundless void.
Over the last 10 years, large-scale battles occurred regularly, with both sides suffering losses each time. Despite the Red Flame Army’s overwhelming momentum, they could no longer easily recapture this Territory as they had done with so many before.
After hundreds of years of retreating, the Black Ink Clan Army finally displayed an unimaginable fighting spirit and resilience. For the first time in hundreds of years, they began to push back against the Red Flame Army, holding them at bay. In addition, the continuous involvement of many Pseudo-Royal Lords put enormous pressure on the Red Flame Army’s Masters.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords were almost equivalent to Royal Lords and Ninth-Order Masters, beings no lone Eighth-Order Master was a match for. At the very least, they needed to form a Five Elements or even a Six Paths Formation to contend with a Pseudo-Royal Lord head-on.
And there were a total of almost 20 Pseudo-Royal Lords in the E-5 Territory!
This was a terrifying number as there would not be this many Pseudo-Royal Lords participating at the other fronts in the war unless there was a Ninth-Order Master present.
The Black Ink Clan’s intentions were clear, they intended to use these Pseudo-Royal Lords to deliver a crushing blow to the Red Flame Army to serve as a warning to all other Human Race Masters!
Though faced with such a strong opponent, the Red Flame Army demonstrated remarkable determination. In each battle, many Eighth-Order Masters gave their all, sacrificing their blood and even their lives in those battles against the Pseudo-Royal Lords. Countless were those who had burnt out and faded away.
They did all of this for only one purpose, to weaken the strength of these Pseudo-Royal Lords, even if they couldn’t kill them!
The Black Ink Clan took advantage of the large number of Innate Territory Lords who had escaped from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction to create a large number of Pseudo-Royal Lords, which was an advantage that the Humans could not match for the time being.
However, the Black Ink Clan had a weakness that was difficult to resolve; once they were injured, it was hard to restore themselves.
The injuries were not severe at first, as the Pseudo-Royal Lords were strong, so it hardly affected them; however, once the injuries became serious, their strength would greatly decline which also meant they had to enter a Black Ink Nest to restore themselves.
With each sacrifice made by the many Eighth-Order Masters, the injuries of the Pseudo-Royal Lords accumulated, forcing them to leave the battlefield and return to the No-Return Pass to heal.
If it weren’t for the continuous dispatch of new Pseudo-Royal Lords from the No-Return Pass to assist in the battle in E-5 Territory, the war would not have been so fierce and the Red Flame Army might even have had a good chance of defeating the enemy.
However, all of this was at the cost of a large number of Eighth-Order Masters dying.
Furthermore, to balance the power gap between the various Armies, the Supreme Headquarters intentionally transferred Divine Spirits to the Armies without Ninth-Order Masters leading them. The Red Flame Army was no exception. Although they didn’t have many Divine Spirits, there were more than 30 with them; even the Ancient Dragon Elders of the Dragon Clan, the Phoenixes, and other Divine Spirits were here with them, lending their aid.
These Divine Spirits had lived for countless years and were undoubtedly stronger than the average Eighth-Order Master. Although there was still a power gap between them and the Pseudo-Royal Lords, their unique Innate Divine Abilities made up for this to a large extent. Often, just two or three Divine Spirits working together could compete with a Pseudo-Royal Lord.
It was precisely because of these factors that the Red Flame Army had been able to persist.
The situation was still very unfavourable, though, as the Black Ink Clan had targeted the Red Flame Army as their primary enemy. Naturally, they would not let the Red Flame Army off so easily. In recent years, the Black Ink Clan had continuously increased their military forces, putting tremendous pressure on all parts of the Red Flame Army.
Any astute person could see that the war in E-5 Territory would ultimately end with the defeat of the Red Flame Army.
The Human Race Masters wanted to kill Masters from the Black Ink Clan, but wasn’t it the same for the Black Ink Clan? There were still many Pseudo-Royal Lords waiting in the No-Return Pass, ready to enter the battlefield at any time. If Mo Na Ye were to throw caution to the wind and dispatch all the Pseudo-Royal Lords, the Red Flame Army would have no way to fight back.
The reason he didn’t do so was to slowly grind down the Humans’ strength like a blunt knife cutting meat. Although the Pseudo-Royal Lords had suffered serious injuries over the past decade, not a single one died, while countless Eighth-Order Masters had.
But even if the Humans knew this, what could they do? The Red Flame Army could not retreat, so all they could do was grit their teeth and persist. Seeking external assistance was also impossible as all the other Armies were dealing with their own opponents and no one had spare power to lend.
If it had been a few hundred years ago, when the Human Race was only defending the dozen or so original Great Territory Battlefields, they could have requested reinforcements from nearby Great Territories. Because at that time, the distance between the various battlefields was not too great, so they could quickly go help and then withdraw.
But now, with the Human Race’s battle lines stretched out so thin, while the various Armies were certainly coordinating their operations, it was difficult to form a situation where they could support each other.
Mo Na Ye’s plan finally came to fruition, and the constant retreat of the Black Ink Clan proved that it was not all for nought.
In the void, a standard Warship charged forward, surrounded by countless Low-Rank Black Ink Clansmen, who were nothing more than cannon fodder. Although there were occasional High-Rank Black Ink Clansmen, they posed no significant threat.
However, in the vast void, this Warship was always at risk of being destroyed, as the number of Black Ink Clan Soldiers was simply too great to defeat. To make matters worse, there were also several Feudal Lords hiding and striking from the shadows when they saw openings.
Trapped here were 11 soldiers from the Red Flame Army Fourth Division, led by Squad Leader Wang Qian and Vice Squad Leader Zhao Li. Only one other member was a Seventh-Order Open Heaven Realm Masters, while the rest were only of the Fifth-Order or Sixth-Order.
Although the Human Race now had the Star Boundary and the Myriad Monsters World as Open Heaven Realm Cradles, not everyone possessed remarkable aptitude; most had an average talent. Only those highly talented ones received a lot of attention.
Furthermore, even geniuses required time to grow and ascend step by step from lower Orders to higher ones; therefore, the majority of the large Armies of the Human Race were still made up of Fifth-Order and Sixth-Order Masters.
However, the average cultivation among the Human Race Masters had increased by at least one or two Orders compared to several thousand years ago.
On the Black Ink Battlefield, having only one Seventh-Order Master per Squad as its Squad Leader was normal. While there was not a shortage of Seventh-Order Masters, there were not too many of them either. Only those who had reached the Seventh Order were eligible for the role of Squad Leader.
But this particular Squad was unique as it had not one or two, but three Seventh-Order Masters, highlighting the general growth of power. In the Red Flame Army, such Squad compositions were considered standard, and it could be said that it was rare for a Squad to have just one Seventh-Order Master in this Army.
Currently, some elite Squads even had Squad Leaders who were Eighth-Order Masters!
The number of Eighth-Order Masters among the Human Race was now quite significant. This was not only due to the accumulation over the years but also because of a surge in Eighth-Order Masters thanks to the Ordinary Grade Open Heaven Pills harvested from the Universe Furnace.
The overall increase in average cultivation also greatly enhanced the strength of various Human Race Armies.
Even so, Wang Qian’s Squad was currently in a tricky situation. During a previous large-scale clash with the Black Ink Clan Army, they got separated from their Division. This was not uncommon during clashes between the two Armies as soldiers could easily get lost in the vast and boundless battlefield.
Normally in such situations, the aim was to return quickly to one’s Division and reunite with one’s comrades; otherwise, being left stranded could make one an easy target for the enemy.
Wang Qian also wanted to lead his Squad back to their Division, but they had the misfortune of encountering a group of the Black Ink Clansmen along the way, forcing them to fight and flee.
With the Black Ink Clan’s overwhelming numbers, the situation for the Squad became even more precarious. The three Seventh-Order Open Heaven Masters took up positions on different sides of the Warship and continually unleashed the power of their Secret Techniques and artifacts, blasting away at the Black Ink Clan soldiers.
Suddenly, a cry rang out from the Sixth-Order Master responsible, “Squad Leader, the Defensive Array is about to collapse! We can’t hold on much longer!”
Another team member shouted, “The Tiger Roar Cannon is overheating! We can only use it three more times at most!”
The Tiger Roar Cannon was the primary Offensive Artifact of their Warship, and every standard Squad Class Warship was equipped with one. When combined with pre-arranged arrays, three Sixth-Order Masters could infuse their power into the artifact to unleash an attack equivalent to a Seventh-Order Master’s full power strike.
However, artifacts and arrays were ultimately lifeless objects, and using them too frequently in a short period could easily exceed their limits.
The Warship’s primary armament was about to overload, and the defensive shields were on the verge of collapse. For the entire Squad, this was adding insult to injury, as the former would greatly reduce the Squad’s might, and the latter would directly decide the safety of the Squad members.
Squad Leader Wang Qian shouted angrily while fighting the enemy, “Zhong Wu Yu!”
“Don’t shout, I’m already working on it!” Came the response quickly from the Warship. He was the last third Seventh-Order Master of the Squad. In a hurry, he ran to the Tiger Roar Cannon and inspected the artifact. He then quickly took out some supplies and activated his power to repair it.
Zhong Wu Yu was not only a Seventh-Order Master, but also an Artifact Refiner. He was no Grandmaster, or even a Great Master, but generally, small damage to the Warship did not need to be sent to the logistics department for repair as he could patch it himself.
On the other side, Vice Squad Leader Zhao Li had a face painted with fresh blood, looking quite dishevelled. He had just charged out into the enemy’s lines and killed a lot of them, easing the pressure on the Squad. But he had also been injured and was now cursing out loud, “That damn Mi Jing Lun! Are we, the Red Flame Army, their forgotten stepchildren? Why don’t we have Ninth-Order Masters leading us like the Soaring Cloud Army or Purple Feather Army?”
As the saying went, ‘Unequal distribution of resources is worse than scarcity.’ Currently, there were six Ninth-Order Masters among the Human Race, but there were a total of 12 frontline Armies.
In the beginning, Luo Ting He was in charge of Azure Sun Territory and managed the Azure Sun Army. Similarly, Wei Jun Yang managed the Wolf Fang Army, so it was understandable that these two Armies could have Ninth-Order Masters leading them. At most, it made people a little envious, but no one would say anything about it.
After the Universe Furnace closed, Ou Yang Lie and Xiang Shan returned as Ninth-Order Masters and took over the Profound Nether Army and Blood Flame Armies respectively. No one said anything about it since they had entered the Universe Furnace from Profound Nether Territory and Blood Flame Territory previously. It could only be said that Profound Nether and Blood Flame had been lucky.
The Red Flame Army also had many Eighth-Order Masters entering the Universe Furnace at that time, but they were unable to ascend to the Ninth-Order.
When Xiao Xiao and Wu Qing were freed, all the Armies watched them expectantly, hoping that these two Ninth-Order Masters would lead them to strengthen their forces.
However, there were only two Ninth-Order Masters and eight Armies hoping to get them. In the end, it was decided by the Supreme Headquarters that Xiao Xiao would lead the Soaring Cloud Army and Wu Qing would lead the Purple Feather Army.
Some had considered consolidating the twelve Armies into six, in which case six Ninth-Order Masters would be enough, but currently, each Army had a massive number of troops. If two were to be combined, the number of troops would increase drastically, making it difficult to manage and coordinate.
Furthermore, there would be more Ninth-Order Masters in the future, did they have to split the Armies once again when that happened?
With these considerations, the Supreme Headquarters decided to maintain the status quo of having 12 Armies; however, half of them would not have a Ninth-Order Master in command, so the Supreme Headquarters could only send Divine Spirits to provide assistance and maintain the balance.
Upon hearing Zhao Li’s complaints, Wang Qian could not help but scold, “The Supreme Headquarters also has its own difficulties! What are you complaining about!?”
“I know,” though Zhao Li was hot-tempered, he was not ignorant of the situation. He wouldn’t usually bring up such issues, but the situation was dire and they were likely to perish soon. When a person was about to die, they couldn’t care less about anything else.
“If you have the ability, then you ascend to the Ninth Order yourself and take charge of the Red Flame Army!” Wang Qian cursed.
Upon hearing that, Zhao Li became furious, “Ascend my ass! I will reach my limit at the Eighth Order in this life… What’s more, those bastards in the logistics department… I wanted to use my military merits to exchange for materials to upgrade the Warship, but they refused. My military merits are hard-earned, why can’t I upgrade my Warship? If I had done so earlier, would we have fallen into this situation? I won’t let those bastards off the hook even after I die!”
Wang Qian remained silent and focused on killing the enemy.
Their Warship was produced by the artifact refiners from the logistics department, and was the standard model that 99% of Squads used. Even if it was a generic Warship, each one cost a lot of resources to refine.
In earlier years, soldiers were not prohibited from using their military merits to exchange for materials to modify their Warships. Since military merits were earned at the cost of their lives, there were no restrictions on how they could use them. As a result, many preferred to upgrade their Warships, believing that a well-equipped Warship would not only help them survive on the battlefield but also increase their chances of killing enemies.
Millennia ago, when Yang Kai led Dawn on the Black Ink Battlefield, their Warship Dawning Light was heavily modified at the cost of a vast amount of military merits. Yang Kai invested most of his military merits in Dawning Light, greatly enhancing its various capabilities and allowing the Dawn Squad to thrive in numerous bloody battles.
However, in recent years, soldiers were no longer allowed to modify their Warships in that manner. The higher-ups were not ignorant of the benefits of modifying Warships, but now that the Human Race faced a scarcity of resources, each resource had to be carefully accounted for and allocated. How could there be any extra resources to give to troops for modifying their Warships?
Only some elite Squads, through a lengthy application process, could exchange military merits for resources to modify their Warships. Even then, the number of military merits required was far more than before.
At this moment, it was unreasonable for Zhao Li to curse the logistics department as they were only executing orders from the higher-ups; however, with everyone facing harsh circumstances and potential death, venting his anger by cursing was understandable.
“Squad Leader, the Defensive Array is about to collapse!” A Squad member shouted.
Wang Qian looked up and saw the shield surrounding their Warship had already dimmed and was on the verge of cracking.
Taking a deep breath, he shouted, “Prepare for a final fight! Xiao Wu, activate the self-destruct array of the Warship! Set it for 10 breaths!”
“Yes!” Responded the Fifth-Order Master who had been called out.
Even if they had to die, they would kill as many enemies as possible!
On the other hand, Zhong Wu Yu, who had been repairing the Tiger Roar Cannon, stopped. There was no point in wasting any more time. He took out his sword and leapt to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Wang Qian, staring resolutely at the densely packed Black Ink Clansmen surrounding them.
One by one, the Squad members summoned their artifacts and gathered around Wang Qian. Their momentum was soaring, and their aura was surging as they formed their Battle Formations.
Even facing thousands of enemies, they advanced fearlessly.
They would fight to the bitter end!
Suddenly, a commotion erupted from the enemy Army. In the next moment, Wang Qian and others’ faces changed slightly as they sensed a vast number of auras disappearing in the surrounding area as if an endless number of Black Ink Clansmen had died in an instant.
But, due to the overwhelming numbers of Black Ink Clansmen surrounding the Warship, they were unable to see what was happening beyond them, leaving them bewildered.
Just as they were in a state of confusion, they suddenly noticed ripples in the void ahead of them. As the ripples passed through, space shook and then shattered, causing countless Void Cracks to spread out like a school of fish swimming over them.
The countless Void Cracks almost enveloped all of the Black Ink Clansmen, yet somehow avoided where their Warship was located, which fortunately remained unscathed.
In the next instant, the Black Ink Clan Army that had cornered them, regardless of their strength or location, all spewed out black blood as they were sliced into pieces by the Void Cracks. Many of them died with bewildered expressions on their faces, not understanding what just happened.
“Wha…” Wang Qian was stunned by the scene.
Although he still didn’t know exactly what had happened, the only thing he could understand was that a powerful allied Master had intervened and instantly killed those Black Ink Clansmen.
[What incredible power…] He didn’t even notice any energy fluctuations, just a layer of ripples, followed by the formation of Void Cracks that enveloped all of the Black Ink Clansmen surrounding their Warship, including the Feudal Lords who had been hiding nearby.
The next moment, a figure suddenly appeared in the sea of corpses and blood. That figure locked eyes with Wang Qian and said nothing before nodding lightly as he confirmed that they were safe. Then, he took a step forward and disappeared.
“Xiao Wu!” Wang Qian suddenly snapped out of his trance, turned his head, and shouted, “Stop!”
He had just given this Squad member the command to activate the self-destruct array after 10 breaths, and he didn’t know if he could stop it now.
At a glance, Wang Qian breathed a sigh of relief as Xiao Wu seemed to have been stunned by what just happened and was standing there motionless.
“Squad Leader, who was that? The Division Commander?” After a moment of silence, one of the team members spoke up and asked.
“Division Commander?” Zhong Wu Yu turned his head and glanced at the person, snorting softly, “Division Commanders don’t have that kind of power.”
What they just witnessed was not something an Eighth-Order Division Commander could accomplish. How could they possibly annihilate such a large number of Black Ink Clansmen in an instant, including several powerful Feudal Lords. Although an Eighth-Order Master could indeed destroy such an enemy force, it would not have been this swift and effortless.
“Not an Eighth-Order Master?” The person who spoke was stunned for a moment, then exclaimed in shock, “Could it be…”
“It’s Senior Yang!” Zhao Li’s eyes shone brightly. Although Yang Kai had only appeared for a moment, Zhao Li recognized him.
Zhao Li had always regarded Senior Yang as his goal to strive for. Previously, he ascended straight to the Sixth Order, so the Eighth-Order Realm was the limit of his life, and the Ninth Order was out of his reach.
However, Senior Yang directly ascended to the Fifth Order in the past and was now in the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, giving many people like Zhao Li hope that he might just still be able to grow to that height one day.
Therefore, Zhao Li had done a lot of research on Yang Kai and even personally went to High Heaven Palace to pay homage to his statue.
Not only Zhao Li, but Wang Qian also recognised Yang Kai and was full of excitement.
He muttered to himself, “Wasn’t Senior Yang trapped in the Universe Furnace?”
It wasn’t a secret that Yang Kai was trapped in the Universe Furnace. Anyone who paid attention to him knew about it. How could he disappear for hundreds of years if he wasn’t trapped there? So, Wang Qian couldn’t figure out how Yang Kai appeared there.
Zhao Li chuckled and said, “For that Senior, being trapped in the Universe Furnace is nothing. He must have found a way out on his own.”
Zhong Wu Yu nodded and continued, “Heroes arise in troubled times. With Senior’s return, the Black Ink Clan is in deep trouble. In any case, we owe him a lot this time. We would have been doomed without his intervention.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
“Haven’t you guys thought of something else?” Zhao Li smiled.
“What else?”
“Senior’s appearance here means that the Red Flame Army now also has a Ninth-Order Master leading us!”
Only then did everyone realize this!
The Red Flame Army had always hoped to have their own Ninth-Order Master leading them, like the other six Armies. Unfortunately, there were only so many Ninth-Order Masters around, so how could their wish come true?
Now that Yang Kai had appeared in E-5 Territory, did it not mean that the Red Flame Army would have a Ninth-Order Master assuming command as well? Their long-cherished wish was finally about to come true!
For a moment, everyone became ecstatic…
After being uplifted, Wang Qian quickly gave orders, and the Warship swept in an arc towards the direction of their Division.
At the same time, Yang Kai’s figure flickered and moved rapidly towards the vast battlefield in the void.
Setting out from Supreme Headquarters, he had been hurrying all the way and arrived at E-5 Territory in less than half a month. After ascending to the Ninth Order, his control over Space Principles had become more proficient, making his travel time shorter than before. If it was before, it would have taken at least a month or two to travel such a distance.
When he encountered Wang Qian’s Squad being besieged on the way, he casually rescued them. For him, it was not a big deal, but he didn’t expect that Wang Qian’s Squad would have some misunderstandings after he showed up.
The intense main battlefield was in sight, and Yang Kai used Thunder Shadow’s Innate Divine Ability to conceal his figure and aura.
For over 600 years, there had been no news of him. Not only did the Human Race think he was trapped in the Universe Furnace, but so did the Black Ink Clan. Not even Mo Na Ye could imagine that he would suddenly appear at this moment.
Since that was the case, then he would announce his return with a giant slaughter!
Amid the vast void, the massive armies of both the Humans and the Black Ink Clan were engaged in a bloody fight. Warships flew about as Secret Techniques and Divine Abilities were shot in all directions.
Between the unleashing of Evil Purging Divine Spears and the spread of the Black Ink Clouds across the void, countless lives were constantly lost in the chaos of the battlefield.
One warship could no longer hold up against the Black Ink Clan’s fervent attacks. The Defensive Array shattered, and breaths before the warship was annihilated, numerous silhouettes shot out into the enemy lines with the determination to go out fighting.
Wherever the Black Ink Clan gathered, the Human Race Masters made sure to target the area with the strength of their artifacts, and they managed to carve large swaths into the enemy lines.
Ever since the Red Flame Army started sieging E-5 Territory, brutal battles had broken out countless times.
The fighting was most intense on the main battlefield, but outside the main battlefield, many other areas had been turned into smaller battlefields too.
This was a feverish battle between the Masters from both sides.
The Eighth-Order Masters, the Divine Spirits, the Territory Lords and the Pseudo-Royal Lords were clashing across the many smaller battlefields as well. Now and then, Dragon Roars and Phoenix Cries echoed across the void, the strong, sonorous roars reaching the ears of both allies and enemies alike, shaking the hearts of all.
The death toll soared on every single battlefield.
The Red Flame Army did not have a Ninth-Order Master assuming command, so to face off against the Pseudo-Royal Lords, the Eighth-Order Masters had to use Battle Formations. Most of the time, a single Pseudo-Royal Lord was able to keep five or six Eighth-Order Masters occupied.
Even the Divine Spirits formed groups of twos and threes to deal with the Pseudo-Royal Lords.
Fortunately, the Humans had benefited greatly from the Universe Furnace. Many new Eighth-Order Masters had emerged over the years already, and the Ordinary Grade Open Heaven Pills that the Humans brought out from the Universe Furnace led to the birth of even more Eighth-Order Masters. Had that not been the case, the number of Eighth-Order Masters in the Red Flame Army would not have sufficed for them to keep the enemy at bay.
Many factors went into deciding the victory of a battle as significant as this. Although the fight had been going on for quite some time now, both parties were still at a stalemate.
On some of the battlefields, the Humans had the advantage, but on others, the Black Ink Clan were in a better position. Achieving victory would depend on which side was able to make the most of their advantage and widen the gap to eventually make it snowball into a decisive win.
But, for the time being, both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan lacked the means to enable them to achieve such an effect.
For the past decade, the Red Flame Army had fought similarly intense battles with the enemy numerous times, but they were never able to gain a decisive edge, though they were never on the losing end of the fight either. All in all, the situation remained a stalemate between both sides.
However, as time passed and the number of battles increased, the situation began to look bad for the Humans.
This was because the Pseudo-Royal Lords that the Red Flame Army were up against were far too decisive and ruthless.
The Black Ink Clan’s large numbers of Pseudo-Royal Lords imposed a heavy burden on the Red Flame Army. None of the Eighth-Order Masters or the Divine Spirits could face off against the Pseudo-Royal Lords alone after all.
Yet, the Black Ink Clan had sent nearly 20 Pseudo-Royal Lords to E-5 Territory, which ended up occupying a sizable portion of the Red Flame Army’s top combat power.
To hold their ground, the Eighth-Order Masters fought valiantly with no regard for their lives as they confronted the Pseudo-Royal Lords. They figured that even if they could not kill the Pseudo-Royal Lords, they were still going to do their best to injure them. As long as the injuries kept mounting, they would have a chance to kill the Pseudo-Royal Lords.
Therefore, though the Pseudo-Royal Lords were injured time and time again, many of the Eighth-Order Masters had been sacrificed as well.
In the last 10 years, nearly 200 Eighth-Order Masters had died at the hands of these Pseudo-Royal Lords, but right up till their deaths, these Eighth-Order Masters had given their all to inflict wounds that would make it hard for their enemies to recover.
200 Eighth-Order Masters was not a number that could be overlooked. Back on the Black Ink Battlefield, no Great Pass would even have 100 Eighth-Order Masters in total.
The Humans were only able to withstand such heavy losses because their heritage had strengthened and more Eighth-Order Masters kept rising.
While the Humans used this method to fight against the Pseudo-Royal Lords, the Black Ink Clan’s strategy to counter them was just as simple. They sent the Pseudo-Royal Lords who were too injured to fight back to No-Return Pass to recuperate and deployed unscathed ones to join the battle.
This meant that the Pseudo-Royal Lords the Red Flame Army was dealing with had changed throughout the last 10 years, though the total number on the field remained the same.
There was still a large group of Pseudo-Royal Lords hanging around at the No-Return Pass. That being said, Mo Na Ye did not send all of them out. Firstly, it was because there had to be Masters standing guard at No-Return Pass, and secondly, it was feeding into the strategy he had in mind.
This was the best way to consistently deplete the Human Race’s strength.
In this way, Mo Na Ye actually shared Mi Jing Lun’s stance. The current battle between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan was not for the sake of claiming Great Territories for themselves, but to weaken the enemy’s forces. The fact that both parties had the same idea led to the devastating battle at E-5 Territory.
Aboard a Purifying Black Ink Battleship in the Red Flame Eastern Army’s possession, the Eastern Army Commander Zuo Qiu Yang Hua was going through the reports he received from the battlefield and giving out orders as needed. His expression was grave, and the atmosphere inside the Warship was tense as well.
The Humans’ 12 Armies had all fought against the Black Ink Clan on the Great Territory Battlefields for thousands of years, so without enough Ninth-Order Masters available, Armies were still under the command of experienced Eighth-Order Masters like Zuo Qiu Yang Hua.
All 12 Armies had massive numbers, so it was hard for an Eighth-Order Master to take control over the entire situation alone. Thus, the Armies mimicked the system of the Great Passes of the past, splitting into Eastern, Southern, Western, and Northern Armies which formed a single Grand Army when combined. Naturally, each Army had a Master leading them.
Doing so made things a little more complicated as the four Army Commanders would have disagreements along the way, but there was no other choice. Without a Ninth-Order Master to take the lead, the Humans had to rely on the veteran Eighth-Order Masters’ battle experience and perceptiveness to make appropriate arrangements.
Thankfully, they had spent several millennia getting into the right mindset, and the four Army Commanders of the Red Flame Army had formed an impossibly close relationship. They were able to work as one to command the entire Army smoothly.
Their rapport and mutual understanding after so many years of working together enabled the Red Flame Army to display their maximum strength at all times and fend off the Black Ink Clan’s attacks time and time again. The Black Ink Clan failed to gain any upper hand in their fights so far.
Out on the battlefield, things could change at any moment. Amid the intense fighting, everyone was focused on their immediate vicinity and it was difficult for them to pay attention to the situation happening elsewhere. Thus, it was easy to get into the situation of having great success on one battlefield while losing miserably on another. Masters could break through the enemy lines and slaughter their troops or suddenly be under siege and in need of rescue with little to no warning.
The Red Flame Army’s Masters were only able to maintain an equilibrium across all the fights because the Commanders kept moving them around as necessary.
Inside the Purifying Black Ink Battleship, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua had only just given out an order when the observer who was keeping an eye on the situation out on the battlefields called out in alarm, “Sir, a group of Black Ink Clan members have broken through the lines and are charging straight at us. They’re coming over now with two Pseudo-Royal Lords in the lead…” He checked the Monitoring Array and was able to quickly confirm their identities.
His voice trembled as he exclaimed, “It’s Jiang Chi and Hu Yu!”
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua’s eyes flashed as he scoffed, “Here I was wondering why they’d gone into hiding. So, this is what they were up to!”
After clashing all these years, the Red Flame Army knew full well who the Pseudo-Royal Lords they were facing were. Although the Pseudo-Royal Lords were rotated in and out a lot more than the Territory Lords, there were a few Pseudo-Royal Lords that the Red Flame Army considered their biggest threats.
Jiang Chi and Hu Yu were two such Pseudo-Royal Lords. Though they were not necessarily stronger than other Pseudo-Royal Lords, they were more cunning and harder to anticipate.
The Eastern Army had fought against these two Pseudo-Royal Lords many times. The Eighth-Order Masters had formed Battle Formations to try and injure the two of them, but they never succeeded and a few Eighth-Order Masters had been sacrificed along the way.
Ever since the start of the current battle, the Eastern Army had paid close attention to the Pseudo-Royal Lords’ movements, but they never found any trace of these two; thus, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua, who was in command here, was not surprised that they showed up now.
The fact that they were charging over so openly made it clear what the two Pseudo-Royal Lords’ goal was. They wanted to defeat the enemy by slaughtering the leader first. As long as they killed Zuo Qiu Yang Hua, the Eastern Army would be left without a Commander. Even though someone else could take over the task of giving out orders to the Eastern Army, that would take time to organize, and would leave an opening to strike at.
Thus, the Black Ink Clan would have the chance to overwhelm the Eastern Army.
The Black Ink Clan’s determination was seen from the fact that they were sending two Pseudo-Royal Lords to accomplish this goal; furthermore, they also brought a large group of Territory Lords with them.
As the Black Ink Clan assault team surged forward, the Eighth-Order Masters moved to intercept them, but the two Pseudo-Royal Lords did not even bother to look at the Humans. Instead, the Territory Lords broke off to keep these Eighth-Order Masters occupied.
Black Ink Strength kept spreading out wherever they went, and with the strength of the many Black Ink Clan members, they were able to clear a bloody path through the Human Army and charge towards the Purifying Black Ink Battleship.
“We can’t hold them back, Sir!” The Master who was reporting on the situation cried out in alarm. With the way things were going, their enemies would soon be able to fly right up to them, and when that happened, everyone inside the Purifying Black Ink Battleship would meet a disastrous fate.
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua eyed the two figures in the distance with a cold gaze. Despite not being their equal in terms of combat strength, he showed no sign of wavering as he commanded, “Execute Operation Jade!”
His voice was steely and left no room for objections.
Everyone was shocked and some wanted to advise against it, but they could not bring themselves to do so. They had been under Zuo Qiu Yang Hua’s leadership for many years now as they fought against the Black Ink Clan all this time. They had killed countless enemies and received immeasurable glory. They had a deep reverence for Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and knew what kind of person the Eastern Army Commander was.
Thus, once he gave the command, all of the Masters inside the Purifying Black Ink Battleship jumped into action.
Human silhouettes whizzed about as the other Warships began breaking off from the massive Purifying Black Ink Battleship and flying off into the distance. Meanwhile, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and a few other Eighth-Order Masters stayed behind. Not only did they not leave, but they even began flaring their auras.
It was obvious what they were doing.
[I’m right here!]
When the two Pseudo-Royal Lords who were charging over saw the Warships leaving the Purifying Black Ink Battleship and flying off with many Human Race Masters onboard, they thought that Zuo Qiu Yang Hua had fled; however, when they sensed his aura, they no longer had that worry.
In fact, they chuckled to themselves, [Is he trying to let his subordinates escape because he knows he’s doomed to die?]
They did not mind. Their goal was to kill Zuo Qiu Yang Hua. Once they killed the Army Commander here, they were confident that the Black Ink Clan would be able to slaughter the entire Red Flame Eastern Army before swallowing up the rest of the three Armies. By doing so, they could deal a catastrophic blow to the Humans.
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua came from Profound Sword Paradise and entered the Black Ink Battlefield when he was a Sixth-Order Master. After spending over 10,000 years serving at Profound Sword Pass, he went from being a Sixth-Order Master to an Eighth-Order Master, and also exhibited a talent in strategy and command that surpassed his peers.
When the Profound Sword Pass was still in existence, he served as Eastern Army Commander. Later on, the Human Crusade to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction ended in defeat and the Army was forced to retreat. Profound Sword Pass had stayed back to delay the enemy, but the Black Ink Giant Spirit God attacked them viciously. In the end, Profound Sword Paradise’s Ninth-Order Old Ancestor died in that battle.
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua had been fortunate enough to escape with his life. With the help of others, he was able to stay alive and retreat to No-Return Pass. Later on, the No-Return Pass had been lost as well and war broke out in the Barren Territory as the Black Ink Clan invaded the 3,000 Worlds.
Thus, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua could be considered an extremely experienced Eighth-Order Master. Not many Eighth-Order Masters had a longer service record than him.
No one could object to him being in charge of the Red Flame Army’s Eastern Army and by default the Army Commander of the entire Red Flame Army.
Throughout all these years, he did not let the Human Race down. Under his leadership, the Red Flame Army had slaughtered countless enemies and gained a massive amount of Military Merits; however, now that two Pseudo-Royal Lords had their eyes on him, he knew he would not be getting lucky this time. The many millennia of fighting had made him intimately familiar with matters of life and death. Thus, now that his predestined time was upon him, he was neither fearful nor frantic. His heart was at peace, though he did have some regrets; after all, he had spent nearly all of his life engaged in the war against the Black Ink Clan, but he would not have the chance to witness the Human Race’s ultimate victory.
It was not to say that he did not see this day coming. As an Army Commander, he had already planned for a situation such as this beforehand. He knew that sooner or later, the Black Ink Clan would rely on the strength of their Pseudo-Royal Lords to execute the strategy they were currently using, so he prepared for it in advance.
Operation Jade was the counter he created for such a situation.
If a powerful enemy came to strike him down and he had no chance of victory, he was going to take them down with him!
The Pseudo-Royal Lords were picking up speed and closing the distance as a powerful aura locked onto Zuo Qiu Yang Hua. As he stood unmoving, he declared, “Brothers, Sister, it has been my honour to fight shoulder-to-shoulder with you today. After today, we will join hands and conquer the afterlife next!”
One of the Eighth-Order Masters chuckled, “That’s the way it should be!”
“It’s a shame we won’t be around to witness the end of this war,” another one remarked.
Another voice rang out, saying, “The time to kill has come!”
The Eighth-Order Masters who remained behind had known from the start that they were most likely headed for their doom, but none of them felt any fear. On the contrary, when faced with such enormous pressure, their thirst for battle intensified.
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua’s typically calm face broke out into a wide grin as he exclaimed, “In that case… charge!”
As he spoke, the Eighth-Order Masters channeled their World Force into the arrays, and in the very next breath, the massive Purifying Black Ink Battleship which had been quietly floating shook before shooting forward in a flash.
The two Pseudo-Royal Lords who were charging over had been completely calm at first, but they were startled when they saw what was happening.
Though they knew full well just how stubborn and full of resolve the Humans were, they were taken aback by such an aggressive response despite the obvious power differential.
Hu Yu, the larger of the two with a pair of wings growing out behind him, coldly snorted, “Overconfidence.”
He had seen similar situations many times. When confronted with a significant disparity in power, the Humans would usually react more aggressively, though that choice tended to be driven by unrealistic fantasies.
If he was still merely an Innate Territory Lord, he would have to dodge situations like these; however, ever since he became a Pseudo-Royal Lord, there were few Human Race Masters that required him to proceed with caution.
Jiang Chi, who was charging along beside him, warned, “Don’t let your guard down!”
Despite saying so, they did not slow their pace. They had brought some Territory Lords along with them, but they had all stopped to block the Eighth-Order Masters who came to intercept them, so right now, it was just the two Pseudo-Royal Lords who were fearlessly rushing straight towards the Purifying Black Ink Battleship with nothing but their mighty power to back them up.
From a distance, the large artifacts that had been installed into the Purifying Black Ink Battleship began unleashing their power under the control of the remaining Eighth-Order Masters. However, these artifacts were only standard issue, so even though they were strengthened by Spirit Arrays and powered by Eighth-Order Masters, it was hard for these attacks to wound the two Pseudo-Royal Lords.
The two Pseudo-Royal Lords dodged or deflected the formidable attacks as they drew nearer to the Purifying Black Ink Battleship.
Once the gap had shrunk to a critical point, Jiang Chi and Hu Yu both unleashed their powers at the same time. A wave of intense Black Ink Strength coursed through the void towards the Purifying Black Ink Battleship.
A dazzling light barrier lit up and shielded the Purifying Black Ink Battleship as Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others used the Defensive Array to block the attacks.
The neverending stream of Black Ink Strength kept colliding against the Defensive Array, making it ripple violently. The Defensive Array was under constant strain and its light quickly faded.
Before the Pseudo-Royal Lords entered close quarters, the powerful shield had already been breached.
This was not because the Purifying Black Ink Battleship’s Defensive Array was weak by any means; however, there were not enough Masters on board the Purifying Black Ink Battleship right now. Only a pair of Eighth-Order Masters were maintaining the Array, so it was hard for it to display its full strength.
If there had been sufficient Masters to keep the Purifying Black Ink Battleship’s Defensive Array up, then even though it would not be able to withstand the relentless attacks from two Pseudo-Royal Lords for long, it would not have broken this quickly either.
Without the protection of the Defensive Array, the Purifying Black Ink Battleship was akin to a Human who had been stripped naked of all defences and stood unprotected in front of two menacing Pseudo-Royal Lords.
As the overwhelming attacks rained down on the Purifying Black Ink Battleship, its bow shattered and many artifacts were destroyed.
The remaining Eighth-Order Masters had no choice but to assume Battle Formations to defend themselves, but with only a handful of Eighth-Order Masters, it wasn’t enough to fend off two Pseudo-Royal Lords.
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others were caught in a hopeless situation!
Jiang Chi and Hu Yu grinned as they lunged towards the Humans.
Just then, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua’s gaze hardened. He was squeezing an Array Jade in his hand as he channelled a huge amount of energy into it.
In the next instant, the tattered Purifying Black Ink Battleship broke apart and the Eighth-Order Masters could barely keep their Formation as a shockwave burst forth.
The taunting looks on the two approaching Pseudo-Royal Lords’ faces had disappeared, only to be replaced by alarm and terror.
Jiang Chi’s eyes grew large while Hu Yu’s expression rapidly shifted.
As the Purifying Black Ink Battleship exploded, a pure, dazzling white light burst into existence. It was as if a Great Sun had exploded and its light scattered across the enormous void.
“Purifying Light!” Jiang Chi snarled, not hesitating for even a moment as both he and Hu Yu swiftly retreated.
This was the exact moment Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others were waiting for, so they were not about to let the Pseudo-Royal Lords back away so easily. They were still in their Battle Formation and began casting Secret Techniques towards Jiang Chi.
These Secret Techniques were not particularly damaging, but they had one thing in common, which was the ability to restrain one’s opponent.
The Eighth-Order Masters did not think they would truly be able to pin down a powerful Pseudo-Royal Lord, their goal was only to delay him as long as possible.
Their efforts paid off; due to the effects of the Secret Techniques, Jiang Chi’s figure grew sluggish and the burst of Purifying Light was able to engulf him. At the very next moment, Jiang Chi’s furious, anguished cries escaped from the depths of the dazzling white light.
Hu Yu was more fortunate as Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others did not target him, but even so, he still suffered during the explosion of Purifying Light too. Although he had only been surrounded by the light for a brief moment, he was still in agony as he felt as if his body was on fire.
Once he stumbled out of the area that was covered in Purifying Light, he turned back with a look of lingering fear.
The Black Ink Clan naturally knew about the large amounts of Purifying Light that were sealed inside the Purifying Black Ink Battleships. Over the years, many Humans had fallen into the hands of the Black Ink Clan and were turned into Black Ink Disciples; thus, the Black Ink Clan had a fairly good understanding of their enemy.
The Humans also had artifacts known as Evil Purging Divine Spears that contained Purifying Light and were used to defeat powerful Black Ink Clansmen.
However, the Humans had never used the Purifying Light inside a Purifying Black Ink Battleship to directly attack the Black Ink Clan before; therefore, the latter had no idea that the Humans could utilize such a strategy.
It cost a great deal to create a Purifying Black Ink Battleship, and out on the battlefields, they were generally command ships where the leaders of the Human Race Armies gathered to strategize. Throughout all the battles, as long as the Humans were not completely routed, the Purifying Black Ink Battleships were never destroyed.
But, today, Hu Yu witnessed something new.
When the huge amount of Purifying Light exploded out of the Purifying Black Ink Battleship, even a Pseudo-Royal Lord like him had great difficulty in confronting it head-on.
[How is Jiang Chi … He can’t be dead, right?]
Amid such thoughts, the dazzling light gradually faded away, and Jiang Chi’s silhouette reappeared. When Hu Yu spotted him, his heart dropped.
Jiang Chi was in a terrible state right now as Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the other Eighth-Order Masters were attacking him with such ferocity that black blood was constantly splashing. Hu Yu could sense that Jiang Chi’s aura was greatly weakened.
[He’s severely injured!] With wounds as grave as this, Jiang Chi would have to return to a Black Ink Nest to recuperate for at least 100 years.
Hu Yu could not help but feel relieved for his good fortune. [Thank goodness they didn’t target me.] He knew that if they did, he would not have fared any better than Jiang Chi.
At this moment, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others were going all out. Two Pseudo-Royal Lords had come to attack them and one of them was now severely injured by Purifying Light. It was the perfect opportunity for the Humans to double down on the offensive. If they could not kill off this injured Pseudo-Royal Lord quickly enough, they would be out of their depth once the other returned to render aid.
With this in mind, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others did not hold back at all. Paying no mind to defence, they went all out to unleash their most devastating Secret Techniques and Divine Abilities, even though it meant that they would be injured in the process too.
Jiang Chi was battered by the relentless attacks and suddenly found himself in an extremely dangerous situation.
Fortunately for him, Hu Yu soon came to his rescue and shouldered the brunt of the attacks.
The two Pseudo-Royal Lords came over to kill Zuo Qiu Yang Hua, and even though they had carelessly suffered in the process, Hu Yu was not about to abandon Jiang Chi and flee on his own.
The Purifying Black Ink Battleship had exploded, so the Humans no longer had any means of defending themselves against them.
With Hu Yu joining the fight, the pressure that Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others faced increased manifold and all of the Eighth-Order Masters knew that their battle had been lost. They did not manage to kill Jiang Chi in time, so they no longer stood a fighting chance.
However, this only made them even more determined to fight to the bitter end. Initially, even with their combined strength, they would have only been able to hold their own against a single Pseudo-Royal Lord. Right now, Jiang Chi was not in peak condition, and while Hu Yu was relatively unscathed, the fight was still intense between both parties.
That being said, both sides knew what the outcome would be; the Humans were destined to die. This was just their final desperate show of resistance, with them being too injured to even use those mutually destructive Secret Techniques again.
The battle was intense, and with each passing moment, more lives were lost on both sides. The other Eighth-Order Masters saw the predicament that Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others had fallen into and they were beside themselves with worry, but they were all occupied with their own opponents and could not lend a hand.
After just moments of clashing, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others’ frenzied strength was beginning to weaken.
For the sake of killing Jiang Chi, the Eighth-Order Masters had unleashed their most powerful Secret Techniques, but these methods were similar to Yang Kai’s Soul Rending Thorn in that they not only harmed their enemy, but also themselves. Alas, they failed to kill Jiang Chi in time and were now injured themselves, so it was challenging for them to continue putting up a fight.
Even so, the Eighth-Order Masters were determined to fight to the end.
Jiang Chi and Hu Yu seemed to have noticed this as well and were no longer in a rush. They remained defensive the whole time to prolong the fight as they were waiting for Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others to expend all their strength before dealing the final, crushing blow. This was the safest way for them to proceed with this battle. After many years of clashing against the Humans, they had garnered numerous experiences and learned the hard way to never underestimate their enemy, especially when they were desperate.
Many a time, the Humans who were on the verge of defeat were able to unleash startlingly powerful attacks at the very last breath, just before perishing. If the Pseudo-Royal Lords were not careful, there was a high chance that they could end up with an unexpected failure instead of a complete victory.
Such incidents had happened numerous times in the past.
Thus, even Jiang Chi, who was heavily injured, was able to remain patient and quell his ferocious murderous intent. He did not allow his rage to overpower his reason.
Amidst the devastation across the battlefield, an undetectable silhouette was rushing unnoticed towards Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others.
Yang Kai, now a Ninth-Order Master, was using Thunder Shadow’s Innate Divine Ability to stealthily infiltrate the battlefield. It was highly unlikely that a true Royal Lord would be able to sense his approach, let alone these Pseudo-Royal Lords.
This Innate Divine Ability was incredibly useful; for instance, inside the Universe Furnace, Yang Kai had used it to snatch the Supreme Grade Open Heaven Pill away from the Chaos Spirit King.
However, despite its usefulness, there was still a disadvantage. When Yang Kai was using it, he could not use Space Principles for as soon as he did, he could no longer conceal himself.
That being said, it was not a bad trade-off as he was immensely powerful now and could move at great speed even without Instantaneous Movement.
When the Purifying Black Ink Battleship exploded, it caused a huge commotion with Purifying Light lighting up half the battlefield. Yang Kai’s attention had naturally been drawn to it right away, so he immediately noticed the situation.
Knowing that Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others were in a perilous position, he did not waste a single breath as he rushed to their aid.
Yang Kai avoided all the fights between the two Armies and in just over a dozen breaths of time, he arrived at the part of the battlefield where Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others were clashing with the Pseudo-Royal Lords.
At the moment, the Eighth-Order Masters’ strength had greatly diminished. Hu Yu knew that now was his chance to strike, so he charged at the Humans and threw a punch with his full force, delivering a shock to the Humans as their strength declined at once.
To make matters worse, as the Humans’ injuries were piling up and their auras had grown unstable. Even the Battle Formation was beginning to show signs of cracking.
The Eighth-Order Masters’ hearts sank. There were two reasons why they could put up a fight against the two Pseudo-Royal Lords until now. The first was that Jiang Chi and Hu Yu were being cautious in their attacks, but secondly, and more importantly, they were relying on their Battle Formation. They had formed a Six Paths Formation which allowed them to combine their strengths as one.
However, if the Battle Formation broke, they would no longer be able to pose a threat to the Pseudo-Royal Lords.
Jiang Chi was already seething with rage because the Humans had managed to severely injure him earlier, so when he saw the situation now, he knew he could not let this chance slip away from him. He stopped acting passively and instead followed up Hu Yu’s attack with a powerful Secret Technique of his own that hurled straight towards the Humans.
Someone of his strength and power would certainly have enough discernment to strike at the most opportune moment.
As Black Ink Strength loomed over them, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others were now in an even more precarious situation. The Battle Formation that they tried so hard to maintain was on the verge of crumbling apart.
“They can’t hold out any longer!” Hu Yu noticed what was happening and growled, “Kill!”
As soon as he finished speaking, he began charging towards Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others murderously; however, at that very moment, he had a strange feeling. His senses tingled with the warning of danger and alarms seemed to ring in his head. He then seemed to hear the churning of a river rushing towards him…
[What’s that?] Hu Yu was confused, but soon really saw a rampaging river appear out of nowhere and crash down on him. He instinctively tried to move away, but all at once, space solidified around him and he could not escape.
Once the river washed over him, Hu Yu disappeared.
Jiang Chi jumped in fright at the abrupt turn of events. He looked over to see what was happening, but all he saw was a massive river cutting through the void. As the currents surged along the great river, he could vaguely see Hu Yu’s figure struggling within, but once one of the waves came crashing down, the figure disappeared.
All at once, Jiang Chi’s scalp grew numb and his hair raised on end as he spotted the figure standing in front of the great river.
One look and he knew who this was.
[Yang Kai!]
It was the killing star, the one whose name was known far and wide among both the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan, the one who made the Black Ink Clan suffer countless terrible losses over the last few thousand years!
Jiang Chi had never met Yang Kai in person before. He was one of the many Innate Territory Lords who managed to sneak out of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, and upon his arrival at the No-Return Pass, he hibernated in a Black Ink Nest to recuperate from his injuries. That went on until a few centuries ago when the war broke out in full between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan. Under Mo Yu’s command, many of the Innate Territory Lords used the Source Fusion Technique to create a large group of Pseudo-Royal Lords to deal with the Ninth-Order Masters. Jiang Chi was fortunate enough to survive the process and become a Pseudo-Royal Lord.
Thus, he had only heard of Yang Kai and how terrifying he was.
He was only able to recognise Yang Kai because Mo Na Ye had once shown Yang Kai’s face and image to all the Black Ink Clansmen before they were sent out.
Even now, Jiang Chi could still recall Mo Na Ye’s instructions. If they were to encounter this person on the battlefield, their first priority should be to flee. However, if they could not flee, they were to do their best to take on Yang Kai in groups, and under no circumstances were they to fight him alone as they would not be able to hold their own against him.
At the time, Jiang Chi did not think much of it. Based on the information the Black Ink Clan received, Yang Kai was sealed up inside the Universe Furnace and would most likely only be able to leave the next time it opened; thus, what were his chances of running into this Human on the battlefield?
All along, Jiang Chi thought that Mo Na Ye was panicking over nothing. Nevertheless, Mo Na Ye was a true Royal Lord, so as a Pseudo-Royal Lord himself, he could not make any objections.
Despite thinking that there was very little chance of running into the Human killing star, Jiang Chi did not look down on Yang Kai’s strength.
Multiple Pseudo-Royal Lords died at Yang Kai’s hands after he became a Ninth-Order Master inside the Universe Furnace. Even a true Royal Lord had fallen to the killing star. None of this information had been kept a secret, so naturally, Jiang Chi heard about everything.
However, he never thought that the impossible would happen right in front of him.
The killing star, who was supposed to be confined to the Universe Furnace, had appeared on the E-5 Territory battlefield, and as soon as he showed up, he used some kind of mysterious ability to incapacitate Hu Yu.
[He has his eyes on me now!]
Jiang Chi felt chills running down his spine. The cold look in the eyes of his opponent made him feel as if death itself was staring at him.
Just as the wheels in Jiang Chi’s mind finished spinning, Yang Kai hoisted the spear in his hand and thrust it out. A torrent of spear shadows instantly loomed over Jiang Chi’s head!
Jiang Chi had been extremely wary of the strange river where Hu Yu had vanished, but he did not expect Yang Kai to forego using it against him; thus, he was completely unprepared for the attack.
He had no way of retaliating against the sudden attack. If he had been at his peak, he might have been able to hold out against Yang Kai for a little while, but he had been gravely injured by the Purifying Light that burst forth when the Purifying Black Ink Battleship exploded; thus, he was no match at the moment.
Black blood splattered everywhere as Jiang Chi gasped in agony. He stumbled backwards from the onslaught of never-ending attacks. No matter how much strength he tried to muster, he could not do anything to block his opponent.
A few short breaths later, Jiang Chi froze in place, his eyes wide with terror and bitterness.
Yang Kai casually raised his spear with one hand before jabbing it through Jiang Chi’s chest. The spear jerked and unleashed a ferocious force that turned the Pseudo-Royal Lord into a cloud of blood mist.
It had been less than 10 breaths of time since Yang Kai’s sudden appearance, but in that time, he managed to kill a Pseudo-Royal Lord while restraining another.
Meanwhile, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others had come to terms with their impending deaths and were about to make one last attempt to gravely injure their opponents; but now, they were simply standing to the side in complete shock…
They were all struck with disbelief.
[How did he… show up here?]
However, they quickly snapped out of it as they filled up with renewed energy. Regardless of why he came, the fact that he was here meant that the Black Ink Clan in E-5 Territory were doomed.
After dealing with the two Pseudo-Royal Lords, Yang Kai glanced at Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others. When he confirmed that there was no threat to their lives despite their depleted strength and serious injuries, he was able to relax and nod lightly to them before his figure vanished.
After witnessing Yang Kai summoning the Space-Time River to confine Hu Yu and slaughtering Jiang Chi right after, Masters across the battlefield, be they Humans or Black Ink Clansmen, were shaken to their core.
The sudden eruption of a Ninth-Order Master’s strength was akin to a brilliant sun that illuminated the darkness of the chaotic battlefield.
Furthermore, it was accompanied by the disturbance of the death of a Pseudo-Royal Lord.
The Humans’ spirits soared! Even though they had no clue which Master had come to their aid, they knew for certain that it was a Ninth-Order Master.
On the other hand, those from the Black Ink Clan were petrified and filled with dread.
[Since that Human killed a Pseudo-Royal Lord that quickly, it’s probably one of the two Old Ancestors, right?] Though the other Ninth-Order Masters were powerful as well, they had only recently reached the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, so it was impossible for them to unleash a force this imposing.
The Black Ink Clan Masters were busy making their guesses when all of a sudden, a Pseudo-Royal Lord’s furious yet terrified roar rang out from a corner of the battlefield, “Yang Kai!?”
As soon as the Pseudo-Royal Lord managed to get the name out, his aura vanished. No one knew what happened to him.
All at once, all from the Black Ink Clan fell into a stunned daze.
It would not have been as serious of a situation if either Xiao Xiao or Wu Qing had come. Though these two veteran Ninth-Order Masters were stronger than the other Ninth-Order Humans, the Black Ink Clan was still able to deal with them; after all, the Pseudo-Royal Lords had a lot of experience going up against the Ninth-Order Masters by now. By forming a Three Fortunes Formation with three Pseudo-Royal Lords, they could put up a fight against any Ninth-Order Master.
However, if it was Yang Kai who came, then things were going to be a lot more difficult for them.
The roar of shock and bewilderment echoed across the void, startling the Black Ink Clan.
Yang Kai’s fame preceded him, and out of all the Ninth-Order Masters, the Black Ink Clan was most afraid of him, the one who should have been confined inside the Universe Furnace right now.
Though they had no clue as to how he managed to escape, he did indeed show up here.
Following the cry of fury and alarm, the aura of yet another Pseudo-Royal Lord disappeared without a trace. It did not seem as if he had died; instead, it was as though he was isolated somewhere and his aura became undetectable.
“Formations! Get into Battle Formations!” A Pseudo-Royal Lord roared. The Pseudo-Royal Lords then swiftly withdrew from the fights they were in to gather among themselves.
The Red Flame Army did not have a Ninth-Order Master among their ranks, so most of the time, the Pseudo-Royal Lords did not team up into Formations. Although they could form a Three Fortunes Formation, usually, they would only do so if they were under some kind of pressure from the situation they were in. They were under no such threat in E-5 Territory, so they mostly chose to fight alone. This allowed them to occupy the attention of even more Eighth-Order Masters, and it also gave them more freedom to move around.
However, a real threat had arrived and they were immediately under great pressure; so naturally, they chose to link up their auras and quickly form Three Fortunes Formations. This allowed them to feel a little more secure.
Nearly 20 Pseudo-Royal Lords had been sent to E-5 Territory. Their high number explained why the Red Flame Army failed to claim this Territory despite being a mighty army with the finest fighters and arms, assisted by numerous powerful Divine Spirits.
Now that most of the Pseudo-Royal Lords had formed Battle Formations, there were two of them remaining who could not form one and were stuck in an awkward predicament.
A Battle Formation could not be formed with just two Pseudo-Royal Lords, but there was no other Pseudo-Royal Lord around to form a trio with them. It was as if they had been abandoned by their allies. They felt annoyed and resentful for having been too slow.
Nevertheless, they had their wits about them still. Since they could not form a Battle Formation, they immediately withdrew from the battlefield and moved to the rear.
Once the Pseudo-Royal Lords had their Battle Formations to rely upon, they felt more confident; however, when they looked around and saw what was happening in front of them, their expressions morphed into shock and terror.
Yang Kai was cutting across the battlefield without hiding himself at all. He had a long, meandering river around him that was like a massive Dragon swimming through the void. Wherever he went, the great river surged and its currents washed over countless Black Ink Clansmen, all of whom disappeared as a result. On the other hand, even if some Humans were entangled with the captured Black Ink Clansmen, they were completely unaffected.
No one could stand in Yang Kai’s way. Even the Territory Lords could not defend themselves from the rampaging river.
Yang Kai was single-handedly carving out a path through the intense battlefield!
[What the Hell is that thing?!]
All the Pseudo-Royal Lords were thunderstruck by the river that was circling around Yang Kai. They were formidable Masters in their own right, but even though they had such power, they did not have the confidence that they could cut through the battlefield this easily; after all, the Humans were not pushovers.
However, Yang Kai was doing what they could not. He did not stop moving and did not have to do anything else either. He simply relied on that strange river to accomplish this feat!
The Pseudo-Royal Lords could not help but recall the information Mo Na Ye had provided in the past. When Yang Kai was inside the Universe Furnace, he used a strange river to kill multiple Pseudo-Royal Lords. It seemed to be a river that was formed by a multitude of Dao Strengths. Falling into the river was essentially a death sentence.
Yang Kai was rushing about, seemingly charging straight at the Pseudo-Royal Lords, causing them to feel trepidatious.
They knew that they could not defend themselves from Yang Kai’s attacks, but as Pseudo-Royal Lords, they could not allow themselves to flee at the mere sight of him either; after all, they should be able to put up a fight against him now!
After composing themselves, the Pseudo-Royal Lords began communicating with each other, and they soon came up with a strategy.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai, who was flying across the battlefield, was feeling a little helpless. Initially, he wanted to use Thunder Shadow’s Innate Divine Ability to sneak up on the Pseudo-Royal Lords. With the difference in strength between him and a Pseudo-Royal Lord, as well as the help of Thunder Shadow’s Innate Divine Ability, he would certainly be able to kill them off one by one. Anyone he had his eyes on would not be able to escape.
He did not need to kill too many, just a third of them would do.
However, he was forced to expose himself in order to save Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others, and now that he had summoned the Space-Time River, there was no way he could hide his presence any longer.
That being said, the Space-Time River proved to be highly effective on this battlefield with massive numbers on both sides. Even though the size of his Space-Time River could not compare with the Infinite River that flowed through the Universe Furnace World, it was still quite expansive. Wherever the river flowed, Yang Kai could clear the place in a flash as all from the Black Ink Clansmen would be sucked into the river.
With so many violent Dao Strengths filling the Space-Time River, most of the Black Ink Clansmen died the moment they fell into it. Even the few stronger ones could only barely survive for a few breaths.
In just a few moments, Yang Kai had cut across the entire battlefield. He instantly saw three Pseudo-Royal Lords in a Battle Formation charging over to him while even more of them were trying to come around from the sides.
Yang Kai did not care about the Pseudo-Royal Lords who were taking the longer route; instead, he met the three in front of him head-on.
Chills ran down the spines of the three. It took a lot of courage for them to face off against the killing star. They were only able to muster up the courage to do so because they were now Pseudo-Royal Lords and had allies of similar strength to back them up. When they saw Yang Kai rushing towards them, they had to force down their urge to run away as they desperately began hurling powerful Secret Techniques at him.
Yang Kai did not attempt to dodge these attacks at all. The dark bolts of light all shot into the Space-Time River, causing the waves to become even more turbulent as it churned with great ferocity, but Yang Kai remained unscathed.
The distance between them continued to shorten, and all of a sudden, Yang Kai lunged forward. He abruptly appeared near the three Pseudo-Royal Lords and eyed them coldly as he sneered, “You’re quite bold!”
He made a grabbing motion and was somehow able to hold the Space-Time River in his hand. With a quick, forceful flick, the great river seemed to turn into a long whip that closed in around the three Pseudo-Royal Lords.
They never thought that the Space-Time River could take on a new form in such a strange way. As they were caught off guard, they could not avoid the river whip. The Dao Strengths swirled around them and cut into their flesh and Souls. Their Battle Formation, which had been weak in the first place, instantly crumbled apart!
An enormous wave crashed down upon the three Pseudo-Royal Lords, and they were all sucked into the Space-Time River.
Filled with terror, they immediately tried to resist and drag themselves out of the Space-Time River, but it was as if the waters had turned into quicksand. No matter how hard they struggled, it did them no good. Waves of Dao Strengths continued to crash down on them and, one by one, their struggling silhouettes disappeared into the depths of the river.
After a brief encounter with Yang Kai, all three Pseudo-Royal Lords vanished and there was no way of ascertaining whether or not they were even alive or dead…
When the other Pseudo-Royal Lords saw what happened, their hair stood on end and they were chilled to the bone.
After many years of battle experience, the Black Ink Clan confirmed that a Battle Formation of three Pseudo-Royal Lords was powerful enough to take on a Ninth-Order Master. All of the current Ninth-Order Masters, be it the new ones or the older, more experienced ones, could not do much against three Pseudo-Royal Lords in a Battle Formation.
Even though a trio of Pseudo-Royal Lords would not be able to defeat a Ninth-Order Master either, they were still enough to keep the latter occupied.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords were fully aware of Yang Kai’s terrifying reputation, and they had also done their best to avoid underestimating him; thus, when they noticed his presence, they all abandoned their original opponents and formed Battle Formations before attempting to take him on. They wanted to rely on the strength of all the Pseudo-Royal Lords combined to deal with Yang Kai.
They knew Yang Kai had his Space Secret Techniques which allowed him to escape from a losing fight, but they were also willing to accept the possibility of simply driving him off.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords never imagined that Yang Kai’s formidability in battle and the horror of going up against him would far exceed their estimations.
As soon as the three Pseudo-Royal Lords crossed paths with him, they were immediately lost to the great river, their fates completely unknown…
The Pseudo-Royal Lords began wondering whether they could truly take on such an opponent.
Yang Kai did not waste any time. He swivelled around and began charging at another group of three Pseudo-Royal Lords who no longer had the guts to face him head-on. They had just seen what happened to their fellow Pseudo-Royal Lords earlier and were not keen on sharing the same end.
Therefore, after a brief moment of hesitation, the three Pseudo-Royal Lords split up and started fleeing in three different directions.
Yang Kai was amused as he roared, “Where are you trying to run?!”
He dragged the Space-Time River with one hand and rushed after one of the Pseudo-Royal Lords. When the latter turned around and saw this, he immediately panicked.
The three Pseudo-Royal Lords had scattered to escape on their own, so he had no idea why he was the unlucky one who was now targeted by the killing star. He could not hesitate for even a single moment as he quickly used a life-saving Secret Technique, spitting out a huge mouthful of black blood as his speed dramatically increased.
All at once, the Pseudo-Royal Lords’ attempt to surround and confine Yang Kai had been negated. They lost all their will to fight after seeing the first group of Pseudo-Royal Lords vanishing into the Space-Time River. The Pseudo-Royal Lord that Yang Kai had his eye on was not the only one who was trying to flee now. All the other Pseudo-Royal Lords were running off as well. They were afraid that Yang Kai would turn around and hunt them down next.
As Yang Kai went after the Pseudo-Royal Lord, he had to focus on using his might to quell the commotion inside the Space-Time River.
Meanwhile, out on the battlefield, without the Pseudo-Royal Lords to aid in combat and lead the battle, the Black Ink Clan Army was severely weakened. The Eighth-Order Masters and the Divine Spirits naturally seized this chance to cut into the enemy lines.
Soon, the battle that had been a virtual stalemate for years dramatically tipped in favour of one side. The Humans had the upper hand, whereas the Black Ink Clan was losing miserably.
The leaders of the Eastern, Southern, Western, and Northern Armies made the most of this opportunity. Orders went out to all four Armies that made up the Red Flame Army, and they charged onto the battlefield to secure a landslide victory by wiping out the Black Ink Clan.
In just half a day, the Black Ink Clan Army had been routed and the scattered handfuls of survivors quickly retreated towards their stronghold. Alas, the Humans were not going to let this chance slip away from them.
The Commanders made the call and the Red Flame Army hunted down the remaining Black Ink Clansmen. They were able to slaughter many along the way, and Black Ink Strength that escaped from the dead corpses seemed to fill nearly half the void.
It was an overwhelming victory for the Red Flame Army, and they only stopped the chase once they were half a day’s travel away from the Black Ink Clan’s main base.
As the battle came to an end, the Red Flame Army at last tasted victory that had long eluded them. Many lives had been sacrificed in the process, but even so, they could not hide their joy.
The Army Commanders gave the order and everyone began cleaning up the battlefield. Universe Fragments were dragged over and a temporary base was created in the void. The Human Race Army gathered at the spot which was directly opposite the Black Ink Clan’s main base in the distance.
The two bases were only half a day’s travel apart, so the stronger Masters with keener eyesight could even see what was happening inside their enemy’s stronghold.
They could tell that the Black Ink Clan was on high alert. Now and then, the aura of a Pseudo-Royal Lord would flicker and flash. It was as if the Black Ink Clan was trying to scare the Humans, but that only proved that they were putting up a strong front.
Throughout the war, the Red Flame Army reclaimed many Great Territories, but they faced the most resistance in E-5 Territory by far. In the previous Great Territories, the Black Ink Clan rarely engaged the Humans in large-scale battles. It was almost as if they surrendered without much of a fight.
The Red Flame Army had suffered many losses throughout the decade of war in E-5 Territory, but in the battle today, they managed to deal a crushing blow to the Black Ink Clan Army and slaughter many of their Masters. The Humans were thrilled, and they were even more excited because it seemed as if a Ninth-Order Master was joining them!
All along, the Red Flame Army and five other Armies did not have a Ninth-Order Master assuming command, leaving them deeply envious of the Azure Sun Army, the Profound Nether Army, and others with Ninth-Order Masters leading them. The presence or absence of a Ninth-Order Master made things feel entirely different. Having a Ninth-Order Master made them feel as if they were children who were well-loved and cared for, and not having one made them feel like orphans that no one cared about.
Nevertheless, they soon regrouped and prepared themselves for the next battle.
On a Universe Fragment that was just 10,000 kilometres away from the temporary base, Yang Kai sat cross-legged with the Space-Time River weaving around him.
The long river was churning with a violent undercurrent that sent tumultuous waves crashing all over.
This could not be helped as the river was currently suppressing five Pseudo-Royal Lords. Even with the power that Yang Kai had now, this was his limit.
During the battle, he first used the Space-Time River to restrain Hu Yu before killing Jiang Chi who was already heavily injured. Then, he used the Space-Time River to suck up the three Pseudo-Royal Lords who charged at him. He already felt the pressure when there were four of them inside there. The Pseudo-Royal Lords would not just stand idly by and allow themselves to die inside the Space-Time River. They kept struggling relentlessly and Yang Kai had to dedicate a large amount of his strength and focus to keep them suppressed.
Witnessing Yang Kai suppress and capture three Pseudo-Royal Lords who had been in a Battle Formation in one go, the rest of the Pseudo-Royal Lords became terrified and began fleeing. In reality, if they had chosen to gang up on Yang Kai at that moment, he would have had to flee from them at once too.
Approximately two-thirds of Yang Kai’s strength was currently being used to quell the commotion inside the Space-Time River. Even he could not hold his own against that many formidable opponents.
Still, the Black Ink Clan had never witnessed such a bizarre method before. They were frightened by the way the three Pseudo-Royal Lords disappeared after simply coming face-to-face with Yang Kai.
Thus, knowing how fearsome Yang Kai was, they did not have the guts to stick around anymore and they immediately ran off.
The last Pseudo-Royal Lord that Yang Kai targeted did not manage to escape either. Yang Kai had purposely delayed for a little while before swallowing that Pseudo-Royal Lord up with the river, allowing the others to think they had gotten away on their own as opposed to him not being able to go after them.
Therefore, there were five Pseudo-Royal Lords sealed up inside the Space-Time River right now, and around four-fifths of Yang Kai’s strength was tied up suppressing them. If that had not been the case, he would have charged straight into the Black Ink Clan’s stronghold by now rather than letting them delay the inevitable.
Silhouettes began moving swiftly from the Humans’ temporary base towards Yang Kai’s position. The four Army Commanders of the Red Flame Army’s Eastern, Southern, Western and Northern Armies were in the lead, and they were followed by over a dozen powerful Divine Spirits.
When this group came over and saw Yang Kai with the Space-Time River around him, reverence coloured their expressions.
“Greetings, Sir!” Everyone bowed in greeting.
Yang Kai smiled and raised his hand, “At ease.”
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua was pale-faced as he and the other Eighth-Order Masters had been injured during their earlier fight when Jiang Chi and Hu Yu came to attack them. They would have surely met their doom if Yang Kai had not come to their rescue at the last moment.
Now that Yang Kai had summoned the various Army and Division Commanders, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua did not waste any time recuperating from his injuries and immediately rushed over with everyone else.
In terms of age and generational seniority, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua was far above Yang Kai; however, in this chaotic world where many geniuses were born, a person’s strength determined their authority.
Zuo Qiu Yang thanked Yang Kai for saving his life before asking, “Why did you call us over, Sir?”
“To kill the enemy!” Yang Kai smiled faintly.
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua immediately turned his eyes to the Space-Time River. He already guessed as much when he came over and spotted the Space-Time River still flowing about, and Yang Kai’s words confirmed it for him.
He was not the only one who figured this out as it was far too obvious. All of them could see that a struggling figure would occasionally be visible within the Space-Time River. It was clear that the Pseudo-Royal Lords who were confined inside were not about to go down without a fight.
It dawned on the crowd that though the strange river was useful when it came to restraining enemies, it was not strong enough to take the lives of Pseudo-Royal Lords.
There was no reason for them to hesitate, so the Eighth-Order Masters and Divine Spirits immediately formed Battle Formations and prepared themselves.
Once they were all in position, Yang Kai raised his hand, and in the very next breath, a figure stormed back out of the Space-Time River.
It was Hu Yu, the first one who had been suppressed inside the river. As soon as he appeared, brutal attacks were launched at him from all directions before he could even grasp what was happening.
Hu Yu was terrified and quickly tried to defend himself, but how could he react in time? Even though a Pseudo-Royal Lord was immensely powerful, the combined strength of nearly 100 Eighth-Order Masters and Divine Spirits was not something he was capable of resisting even at his peak.
Thus, in the face of the avalanche of attacks, Hu Yu exploded into a cloud of blood before he could even cry out in agony.
Many of the Humans were stunned at this sight. After so many years of battling against the Black Ink Clan, it was their first time killing a Pseudo-Royal Lord, and they had done it so easily too. They could not help but feel as if they were dreaming…
Then again, even a true Ninth-Order Master would not necessarily be able to withstand the attacks of that many Masters, let alone a Pseudo-Royal Lord.
Hu Yu was dead, but Yang Kai did not stop there. The Space-Time River rippled once more and another figure stumbled out. Similarly, he was greeted with a barrage of ferocious attacks from all directions.
The Black Ink Clan’s base camp was situated on a large Universe Fragment that was covered in Black Ink Nests. Their remaining forces had all gathered together and their hearts were heavy with dread.
The killing star was back!
In this battle, the Black Ink Clan lost six Pseudo-Royal Lords and countless other Masters.
Even though they managed to flee back to their stronghold, the Pseudo-Royal Lords did not feel secure at all. The thought of Yang Kai’s earlier display made them extremely fearful.
The strange river seemed to contain a mysterious power that they could not deal with. Now that the Army had suffered a crushing defeat, the Pseudo-Royal Lords were beside themselves with worry as they did not know what to do next.
Previously, the Pseudo-Royal Lords who numbered almost 20 in total had gathered here under Mo Na Ye’s orders to decimate the Red Flame Army by killing as many Human Race Masters as possible.
Everything had been going according to plan. The Black Ink Clan had been in control of the battle as they had the strength of a large number of Pseudo-Royal Lords backing them, so they were certain they would achieve their goal in just a few more years.
However, everything fell apart thanks to the arrival of a single Human!
The Pseudo-Royal Lords who fled back to their stronghold held a simple discussion. They quickly decided to send news regarding Yang Kai’s arrival back to the No-Return Pass.
In reality, they wanted to immediately retreat, but they dared not leave the area without Mo Na Ye’s orders, so they had no choice but to group together and watch out for any possible attacks on them.
“When Sir Mo Na Ye came back from the Universe Furnace, he brought back some information regarding Yang Kai, including information about that peculiar river. Sir Mo Na Ye said the river seems to be made out of Yang Kai’s Dao Strengths. It can be used to attack or defend and is incredibly effective when used to restrain opponents. So, even though they were captured, they could still be alive.” All was quiet and sombre when a Pseudo-Royal Lord suddenly spoke up. He had an Ox-Head with two horns sticking out. It was as if he did not completely assume Human Form yet.
“They’ve fallen into the hands of the killing star. Does being dead or not make a difference?” One of the Pseudo-Royal Lords retorted darkly.
“What I meant is, since they’re not dead, should we try to rescue them?” The Ox-Head Pseudo-Royal Lord asked.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords all turned towards the Ox-Head Pseudo-Royal Lord at once. It was as if they were staring at a lunatic. [We barely managed to escape from that killing star! It’s good enough that he didn’t chase us down, so how can you even think about trying to pick a fight with him? Do you have a death wish?]
They were all once Innate Territory Lords who became Pseudo-Royal Lords with the help of the Source Fusion Technique. They had all experienced a narrow brush with death in the process, so they cherished their lives even more than the ordinary Black Ink Clansmen. None of them dared to agree with the Ox-Head Pseudo-Royal Lord’s suggestion.
The Ox-Head Pseudo-Royal Lord frowned, “Although Yang Kai is strong, if this many of us Pseudo-Royal Lords join hands, I don’t think we need to fear him. I studied the situation earlier. Even though that river is strange, it’s not impossible to get around it. Yang Kai should be at his limit keeping five Pseudo-Royal Lords confined inside the river. Jiang Chi was killed, but Hu Yu and the others are still alive. If we don’t rescue them, how are we to explain ourselves to Sir Mo Yu and Sir Mo Na Ye if they question us about this?”
The Pseudo-Royal Lords felt exasperated by what he was saying, but they could not refute him either; nevertheless, none of them felt willing to go up against the killing star.
“Furthermore, rescuing them is also a way for us to protect ourselves. By rescuing them, we will strengthen our side and stand a better chance if we must fight Yang Kai in the future,” the Ox-Head Pseudo-Royal Lord added.
One of the Pseudo-Royal Lords agreed, “He has a point. If we don’t rescue them, we’ll be in a disastrous situation the moment Yang Kai comes after us.”
Thus, the dozen or so Pseudo-Royal Lords were caught between two hard choices. On one hand, they did not dare to mount a rescue attempt. The bizarre tactics that Yang Kai had previously used were far too frightening. On the other hand, if they did not try to rescue the captured Pseudo-Royal Lords, those five were surely doomed, and once Yang Kai was freed up again, he would turn his attention back on the rest of them.
However, before the Pseudo-Royal Lords could come to an agreement on what to do, the extinguishing of a top Master’s vitality reverberated across the void.
Even though there was quite a distance between the two bases, the Pseudo-Royal Lords picked up on the commotion with crystal clarity.
“That was Hu Yu…” the Ox-Head Pseudo-Royal Lord turned in the direction the commotion had come from, and he could not help but sigh, “There’s no point going over now.”
Since the Humans had started their slaughter, it was already too late.
True enough, they began sensing the deaths of even more Pseudo-Royal Lords. Each death caused a huge disturbance, and in short order, the fallout occurred five times…
This meant that the five captured Pseudo-Royal Lords had all been executed.
All at once, the surviving Pseudo-Royal Lords could not help but feel grief over the lives that had been lost as it could have very easily been them who suffered this fate.
After sensing the deaths of five Pseudo-Royal Lords, the rest of the Pseudo-Royal Lords who had been lucky enough to survive huddled together on the Universe Fragment where the Black Ink Clan’s base was. It was hard to describe what they were feeling as questions ran through their minds. [Isn’t the killing star supposed to be confined inside the Universe Furnace? Why did he show up here out of the blue? How did he manage to get out?]
Regardless of how Yang Kai, who was now a Ninth-Order Master, managed to leave the Universe Furnace, he was bound to be a great threat to the Black Ink Clan. Upon showing up at E-5 Territory, he swung the battle wildly in the Humans’ favour and the Black Ink Clan Army suffered tremendous losses.
The deaths of their clansmen filled their hearts with dread. The Ox-Head Pseudo-Royal Lord squared his chest and said, “Yang Kai is back and none of us can challenge him one-on-one. Even if we form Battle Formations, we might not be able to gain the upper hand when he has that strange river of his. Now that Hu Yu and the rest are dead, Yang Kai will surely seek us out. From now on, we must always travel in groups. No one is to move around alone. We cannot let him get even the slightest chance of attacking us. As for what we’re going to do next… Well, let’s wait for Sir Mo Na Ye’s orders. What do you say?”
All the Pseudo-Royal Lords swiftly nodded in agreement. Grouping up was the only way they could feel a little more secure when they were up against an opponent as strong as Yang Kai and all his peculiar methods.
Now that they were all on the same page, the Pseudo-Royal Lords did not dare to venture away from each other. They gathered together and used their Divine Senses to scan the surrounding area, constantly keeping their guard up against Yang Kai.
Back at the Humans’ temporary base, after killing the five Pseudo-Royal Lords who had been captured, Yang Kai flicked the Space-Time River one last time and countless dead bodies were thrown out.
These were the other Black Ink Clansmen who had been pulled into the Space-Time River earlier.
Pseudo-Royal Lords who were caught inside the Space-Time River could still use their immense power to defend themselves from the torrent of Dao Strengths, but the others who were not as powerful could not do likewise. Even the Territory Lords who had fallen into the river could only survive for a few moments while the weaker ones died as soon as they were sucked in.
During Yang Kai’s dash across the battlefield, over a million Black Ink Clan Soldiers had been swept into the Space-Time River. The dead bodies that fell out created a mountainous pile that made the Eighth-Order Masters and Divine Spirits feel their scalps numbing.
They sighed in awe. Yang Kai had already been known for his fearsomeness when he was just an Eighth-Order Master. Now that he was a Ninth-Order Master, they were certain that he was the most powerful Master among the Humans as they doubted that any other Ninth-Order Master had the ability to decimate as many enemies as he did.
“Wait here, everyone. I’ll be right back,” Yang Kai instructed, putting away the Space-Time River before standing up and taking a step and vanishing.
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others had been waiting to ask Yang Kai what they should do next, but since he had given the word, they could only wait patiently, though they were puzzled as to what Yang Kai was doing.
However, they soon found out what Yang Kai was up to.
A great chaotic explosion burst forth from the direction of the Black Ink Clan’s base. Everyone’s attention was drawn to it as they saw flashes of Secret Techniques shooting in all directions. They even heard the sounds of Yang Kai’s laughter and the Pseudo-Royal Lords’ roars of fear and anger…
The Eighth-Order Masters and Divine Spirits were dumbstruck!
[He went to attack the Black Ink Clan’s base alone!? Just how fearless is he?!]
They could not help but feel nervous on Yang Kai’s behalf. Even though Yang Kai had exhibited unparalleled strength in the earlier battle by killing a Pseudo-Royal Lord and capturing five others, the Black Ink Clan still had over a dozen other Pseudo-Royal Lords. Now that they had all gathered at their stronghold, they would surely be vigilant against any possible attacks. Would Yang Kai really be able to do something by charging over there alone?
The Pseudo-Royal Lords were not pushovers, after all. The great success of the earlier battle could be largely attributed to the Black Ink Clan’s lack of defence against Yang Kai. It was their first time dealing with Yang Kai as a Ninth-Order Master and they had no experience handling that strange river.
However, now that the Black Ink Clan Masters were on guard against Yang Kai, he might not be able to attack them successfully.
Even though the Eighth-Order Masters and the Divine Spirits did not think Yang Kai’s attempt would be fruitful, they still felt reverence and were motivated by his drive. It was unlikely that any other Ninth-Order Master would be as bold and courageous as him.
Meanwhile, the Space-Time River was whipping around the Universe Fragment where the Black Ink Clan’s base was, causing a huge ruckus.
Despite losing six Pseudo-Royal Lords, the Black Ink Clan still had over a dozen of them who were now gathered in one place, banking on their strength in numbers. Furthermore, they were taking precautions against the possibility of a sneak attack from Yang Kai, so they were highly vigilant.
Never would they have thought that even with such stringent defence measures, Yang Kai would still be able to pop up right next to them without them noticing his approach. The Pseudo-Royal Lords’ strict security measures had been entirely useless as no one noticed Yang Kai’s before he showed himself.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords only noticed the killing star’s presence when he suddenly showed up behind a Pseudo-Royal Lord and summoned that strange river.
Nevertheless, it was too late. The Pseudo-Royal Lord was engulfed by the river, and as the waves crashed down on him, he could only struggle for a brief moment before disappearing into the water. All at once, amid the cries of fury and terror, attacks were launched at Yang Kai from all directions.
It had been less than an hour since the Black Ink Clan Army fled back to their base, but another fight was now breaking out right on their doorstep.
However, the fight ended just as abruptly as it started. It had been less than 10 breaths of time in total since Yang Kai launched his sneak attack, but by now, he had already run off with that strange river of his, taking two Pseudo-Royal Lords with him who had disappeared into the river!
The remaining Pseudo-Royal Lords were shocked and furious as they stared in the direction where Yang Kai had fled, but none of them dared to go after him as they were terrified they would share the same fate as their less fortunate comrades.
The Ox-Head Pseudo-Royal Lord had a look of lingering fear too. He had also been swept into the Space-Time River and had nearly failed to struggle back out of it. He had to thank his fellow Pseudo-Royal Lords for attacking Yang Kai so fiercely that the killing star could not focus on keeping him suppressed inside the river, which enabled his escape. Otherwise, Yang Kai would have been able to capture three Pseudo-Royal Lords instead of just two!
After experiencing this abrupt sneak attack, all of the Pseudo-Royal Lords were grim-faced.
They had all heard many stories about Yang Kai.
When Yang Kai was an Eighth-Order Master, his biggest trump card was his Space Secret Technique, allowing him to escape from any opponent he could not defeat.
Now that he was a Ninth-Order Master, it was one thing for him to be able to both fight or flee as he wished, but what was most unnerving was the fact that he could move around so stealthily. Even now, none of the Pseudo-Royal Lords could figure out how Yang Kai evaded their senses.
None of them had picked up on the slightest hint of peculiarity before Yang Kai made his move.
Not only was he adept at both fighting and fleeing, but he also had an even more mysterious and powerful Secret Technique that allowed him to conceal his movements… An opponent like him was far too terrifying!
Thunder Shadow’s Innate Divine Ability was even able to evade the detection of Royal Lords and Chaos Spirit Kings to a great extent. This Divine Ability in the hands of Yang Kai only served to make him even more formidable. It would be more surprising if the Pseudo-Royal Lords could detect his presence.
All of a sudden, the Ox-Head Pseudo-Royal Lord said, “Let’s withdraw our forces.”
It was not safe for them to stay any longer. No matter how many precautions they took, all of the Pseudo-Royal Lords could very well die if Yang Kai launched a few more sneak attacks. Under these circumstances, their only choice was to evacuate, and the quicker the better.
None of the remaining Pseudo-Royal Lords dared to oppose his suggestion as all of them quickly nodded in agreement. They had been planning on waiting for Mo Na Ye’s orders, but there was no point in waiting now. If they stuck around any longer, there was a high chance that the entire Army would be massacred.
Back on the other Universe Fragment, Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others were staring in shock at Yang Kai. Although he looked dishevelled, they still felt nothing but respect for him.
Even Yang Kai had a hard time fighting over a dozen Pseudo-Royal Lords head-on. Fortunately, he was a Divine Dragon and had thick skin and strong flesh which could withstand quite a beating. He managed to endure the brunt of the attacks, though he was somewhat disappointed that one of the three Pseudo-Royal Lords who had been drawn into the river managed to escape.
“Sir!” Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others quickly went over to Yang Kai, keeping an eye on the Space-Time River as it circled around the latter.
Yang Kai nodded, “Same as before!”
All were thrilled. [He succeeded!]
Without even a moment of hesitation, they immediately gathered their strength and waited.
Just as before, Yang Kai released a Pseudo-Royal Lord from the Space-Time River, and the latter was greeted by a flurry of fierce attacks.
The two Pseudo-Royal Lords who had been captured did not even get the chance to fight back as they both died one after the other.
The Eighth-Order Masters and Divine Spirits were ecstatic. Including the six from earlier, the Black Ink Clan lost a total of eight Pseudo-Royal Lords in E-5 Territory!
Since the Humans and the Black Ink Clan entered a state of all-out war, the Humans had not been able to kill as many Pseudo-Royal Lords as they did today, even when combining the achievements of all 12 Armies.
It was not because the other Ninth-Order Masters were weak, it was just that the Pseudo-Royal Lords were formidable opponents too and could still stay alive even when they were up against the Ninth-Order Masters. Furthermore, the other Ninth-Order Masters did not have all the mysterious and profound means that Yang Kai had.
If Yang Kai had gone off to hunt down Pseudo-Royal Lords by himself, he would not have been able to kill this many of them in such a short span either; however, by relying on the Space-Time River, he could capture some Pseudo-Royal Lords and bring them back to let everyone work together to finish them off. This made things much easier.
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others still barely believed the situation happening before their eyes. They never thought there would come a time when they could kill off Pseudo-Royal Lords this easily…
Yang Kai sensed their eager gazes and knew what they were after. They wanted Yang Kai to make a few more trips to the Black Ink Clan’s base. Even if he only brought back two per trip, they would still be able to slaughter all of the Pseudo-Royal Lords if he made six or seven trips.
Yang Kai, however, just chuckled, “It’s not possible anymore. The Black Ink Clan seems to be withdrawing their Army. The remaining Pseudo-Royal Lords would’ve fled by now.”
“Withdrawing their Army?” Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others were stunned as they stared off into the distance at the Black Ink Clan’s base. True enough, once they focused, they could see the bustle of activity at the Black Ink Clan’s base. A large number of Black Ink Clansmen were rushing towards the Territory Gate to retreat to the adjacent Great Territory. It was less of an orderly withdrawal than a rush to escape.
How could the Humans just let them go though?
The two Armies had been clashing at E-5 Territory for over a decade and countless Humans had died in the process. The bloody feud between them made it impossible for the Red Flame Army to simply allow the Black Ink Clan to retreat in peace.
Moreover, the Black Ink Clan Army’s large-scale retreat was a great chance for the Humans to hunt them down and bolster their victory with even more kills.
With that thought in mind, the Army Commanders exchanged glances and instantly picked up on each other’s intentions.
The Army Commander of the Southern Army patted Zuo Qiu Yang Hua’s shoulder and gave him a meaningful look, “You’re injured, Senior Brother, so you should stay here and tend to your wounds. You can keep Sir Yang company and chat with him for a bit. Leave the enemy to us.”
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua got the message and nodded, “Good. I’ll handle the rear this time.”
Soon, the orders went down and the Human Race Masters who had only just finished setting up their camps flew off again. This time, the four Armies rushed straight towards the Black Ink Clan’s base as yet another battle was about to begin.
The Black Ink Clan had set up their base in front of a Territory Gate that led to a nearby Great Territory, which made things convenient in the event that they had to make a hasty retreat. Now that the Pseudo-Royal Lords had been scared off by Yang Kai and had run away, the rest of the Black Ink Clan Army followed suit.
That being said, the Black Ink Clan Army had massive numbers and it was impossible for all of them to retreat at once; thus, even though the two camps had been half a day’s worth of travel apart, the Red Flame Army would still be able to score significant kills if they rushed over now.
The Red Flame Army were not at all afraid of a Black Ink Clan Army without any Pseudo-Royal Lords among them. They knew for certain that it was going to be a one-sided slaughter!
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the other injured Eighth-Order Masters of the Eastern Army looked on with delight as they watched the Red Flame Army fly off into the distance. It had been 10 long years and the Red Flame Army was finally able to claim E-5 Territory; however, the most important aspect to celebrate now was the fact that Yang Kai’s appearance led to the Black Ink Clan suffering significant losses among their top Masters.
The Black Ink Clan would deeply feel this loss for quite some time.
Many years ago, the Humans figured out what the Black Ink Clan were up to and changed their strategy as well. Reclaiming Great Territories was no longer their goal; instead, they aimed to kill the Black Ink Clan’s strongest Masters as that was the only way for them to weaken the Black Ink Clan.
Everything that the Red Flame Army accomplished now was thanks to a single man. Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others were exhilarated at the thought that the Red Flame Army might finally be able to count a Ninth-Order Master among them, and one as powerful as Yang Kai to boot.
“Sir, did the Supreme Headquarters send you over to aid us?” Zuo Qiu Yang Hua asked as he withdrew his gaze from the impending battle.
“Indeed,” Yang Kai nodded, “Senior Brother Mi said that the battle was becoming perilous in E-5 Territory, so he asked me to make the trip.”
After seeing the looks of joy on everyone’s faces, Yang Kai could more or less figure out what they were thinking so he chuckled and added, “But, I won’t be staying with the Red Flame Army.”
The Eighth-Order Masters’ delight turned to shock as one of them asked, “What do you mean, Sir?”
It seemed as if things were not quite what they expected…
“We have 12 Armies, but there aren’t enough Ninth-Order Masters to assume command of all of them,” Yang Kai explained, “That’s why I’ll be moving around the six without a Ninth-Order Master to support them. Anyone who runs into any difficulty can ask me for help and I’ll head over at once. As you know, I’m proficient in the use of Space Principles and can travel at great speeds. This is an advantage of mine that the other Ninth-Order Masters can’t match.”
Having heard what Yang Kai said, the Eighth-Order Masters fell deep in thought.
Although they yearned for Yang Kai to stay and assume command of the Red Flame Army, doing so would be too unfair to the other five Armies without a Ninth-Order Master as they too were under a lot of pressure.
An immeasurable number of Humans had sacrificed their lives throughout the many years of war against the Black Ink Clan, and every Human hated the Black Ink Clan to the core. The Humans could not waste any amount of strength they had that could be used to overpower the Black Ink Clan.
Therefore, though they were a little disappointed after hearing what Yang Kai said, they could still accept it as they were leaders of an Army and wise enough to know what was best.
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua nodded and said, “You’re right, Sir. Having you take the trouble to move around more is the only way to minimize our losses.”
Yang Kai smiled and assured, “You don’t need to worry. It’s been so many years so I’m sure the next generation of Ninth-Order Masters will come along soon enough. In the future, there’ll be more than enough Ninth-Order Masters to go around.”
His words lifted everyone’s spirits. Just as Yang Kai said, the prolonged war against the Black Ink Clan had given the Human Race Masters enough time to grow and rise up. Right now, every Army had a group of talented Masters who were at the peak of their cultivation and had the chance to become Ninth-Order Masters.
Perhaps some pleasant surprises would happen with these talented youths. When the time came, the Humans would see a sudden jump in the number of Ninth-Order Masters. There would surely be enough of them to lead more than 20 Armies, let alone the 12 they had now. The Humans would no longer be troubled by a lack of Ninth-Order Masters.
Zuo Qiu Yang Hua then frowned, “The Black Ink Clan should also be having Territory Lords becoming Royal Lords soon. There are now a lot of Acquired Territory Lords too, all of whom have the ability to become Royal Lords. It’s easier for the Black Ink Clan to ascend to a new realm as well. Who knows what kind of heritage they have now after so many years? It’s a shame that the Territory Lords who have a chance to become Royal Lords have all been kept within the No-Return Pass to grow with the help of the High-Rank Black Ink Nests there. The Humans have no way of gathering any intelligence on them.”
Upon hearing this, Yang Kai raised his brow, “What a coincidence, I was just planning on making a trip over there to take a look.”
“You’re heading to the No-Return Pass, Sir?” Zuo Qiu Yang Hua asked, startled.
“That’s right,” Yang Kai affirmed, “I’m heading over to bring something back.”
He was perfectly calm and relaxed, but the Eighth-Order Masters froze in shock as they exchanged glances. Deep down inside, they were all in awe of just how bold Yang Kai was.
None of the other Ninth-Order Masters would ever think of doing something like that, but on second thought, even when Yang Kai was still an Eighth-Order Master, he had already gone to the No-Return Pass to cause trouble for the Black Ink Clan. Now that he was a Ninth-Order Master, it would only be easier for him and it was unlikely for him to get into any real danger.
In any case, they were not in a position to worry about a Ninth-Order Master’s safety.
“Be careful, Sir,” Zuo Qiu Yang Hua said seriously.
Yang Kai nodded and instructed them, “After reclaiming E-5 Territory, stay here for a while and re-organize yourselves. Wait for orders from the Supreme Headquarters to see what the next step is going to be.”
“Yes, Sir!” The group of Eighth-Order Masters promised. Even if Yang Kai had not said anything, they would not have attempted anything on their own accord either. The Supreme Headquarters was in charge of directing all of the Armies. Even though each Army seemed to be fighting independently, in reality, they were able to provide each other with some level of support thanks to centralized coordination. If any one Army moved too far ahead and broke off contact from the rest, they would be in a terrible situation if the Black Ink Clan seized that opportunity to target them.
Yang Kai did not stick around to say anything else. He got to his feet and dashed off into the void while Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others saw him off.
Over at the Territory Gate, the Black Ink Clan Army was hurriedly evacuating. The Pseudo-Royal Lords had been the first to flee and most of the Territory Lords sensed that things were not looking good for the Black Ink Clan and had fled as well. The Black Ink Clan Army was akin to a headless chicken as they were without a clear leader. Even though a fair number of Territory Lords had stayed back to keep things in order, it was hard for them to maintain any semblance of it as the Army was in a state of disarray.
Moreover, when they realised that the Red Flame Army was coming over to attack them, the situation became even more chaotic. Though the Humans would have to travel for half a day, the Territory Gate was only so big so there was a limit to how many could pass through at a time. Half a day was not nearly enough time for the Black Ink Clan Army to retreat as a whole. At least half of them would have to stay back to keep the Humans occupied in order to give the rest a chance to escape.
Thus, a few Territory Lords began organizing the troops and most of the expendable Black Ink Clansmen had been left behind to delay the enemy while the stronger Masters and those with more potential were allowed to leave first.
Just as soon as they finished making their arrangements though, a powerful aura began rapidly approaching them.
The aura was accompanied by a brilliant light that seemed to leave a dazzling trail against the darkness of the void.
“It’s Yang Kai!” A Territory Lord screamed in terror.
Every single Black Ink Clansman feared the killing star and just a while ago, he was able to sneak into their camp and capture two Pseudo-Royal Lords alive. It had not been long since then, but he was already coming at them again. He was simply relentless.
Upon noticing this, the Territory Lords who stayed back to keep the Army in order could not hold still. They could not bother about anyone else anymore as they started fleeing towards the Territory Gate in a bid to escape as soon as possible.
All at once, the already disorderly Black Ink Clan Army descended into utter chaos.
The sound of rushing water was heard as Yang Kai summoned the Space-Time River. The many Dao Strengths surged with the waves and crashed down on the Black Ink Clan Army.
None could stop it as entire swaths of Black Ink Clansmen were instantly swept up and sunk into the Space-Time River where they were immediately killed.
Yang Kai kept pushing forward as his Space-Time River continued to rampage along. The Black Ink Clansmen who were sucked into the river were instantly tossed out again, but they had all lost their vitality.
There was no Pseudo-Royal Lord around and the Black Ink Clan Army did not even have Innate Territory Lords leading them. It was impossible to imagine the damage and deaths that a single Ninth-Order Master could inflict on them now.
Although some of the Black Ink Clansmen tried to fight back, their efforts were meaningless. Their attacks did not even manage to reach Yang Kai. Some were absorbed by the Space-Time River while others were deflected by the twisted Space-Time around it.
In just a few moments, Yang Kai arrived at the Territory Gate and rushed headlong into it.
The moment he entered the Territory Gate, the once-stable portal started shaking violently. It was as if the Territory Gate was about to shatter as Void Cracks weaved across its surface.
Many of the fleeing Black Ink Clansmen could not stop in time and crashed into the shattered space only to be instantly slashed to pieces.
Many more rushed in but they fell dead the moment they touched the Territory Gate.
Some of the Territory Lords finally realised what was happening. Yang Kai had done something to the Territory Gate so they could no longer use it.
It would have been hard for anyone else to do such a thing. Territory Gates had existed since ancient times and had always been an extremely stable passageway between Great Territories; however, for someone like Yang Kai who was a Master of the Dao of Space, it was easy enough for him to turn the Territory Gate into a death trap. At this point, his mastery of the Dao of Space far exceeded what he had before he entered the Universe Furnace.
This allowed him to kill many enemies without even having to make a move personally!
The Territory Lords who chose to hang back were sorely regretting their decision now. If they had known this would happen, they would have fled with the Pseudo-Royal Lords.
However, at the time, they had been feeling lucky about their chances, and it took a lot of effort for them to gather the soldiers they had under their command, so they were reluctant to simply abandon them. None of them expected this cruel twist of fate.
They could no longer use the Territory Gate and the Red Flame Army was rapidly closing in. Those who had already gone through the Territory Gate had managed to escape, but the rest of the Black Ink Clan Army who remained behind did not have anywhere to run.
Though they were still massive in numbers, without any Pseudo-Royal Lords and only a few Territory Lords, they were not a match for the Red Flame Army that was hungry for slaughter. It was only a matter of time before they were all killed.
Thus, they began to drown in their own sorrow. The killing star had used a simple trick to guarantee the deaths of millions of the Black Ink Clansmen. They lamented his cruelty.
In the distance, the leaders of the Red Flame Army had seen this scene playing out in front of them. Initially, they were rushing over as fast as they could as they were afraid that the Black Ink Clan Army would have left through the Territory Gate before they could arrive; however, the Territory Gate had been turned into a deathly trap now and the Black Ink Clan Army had no way out. They were stuck here.
Since that was the case, the Humans no longer had to make a mad dash and instead began to form coherent formations as they proceeded steadily.
The Black Ink Clan had claimed the No-Return Pass for many years now. It had been thousands of years since the Human Race Army withdrew, and after being in the Black Ink Clan’s possession all these years, this place that once belonged to the Humans was now the Black Ink Clan’s stronghold and core base.
All of the High-Rank Black Ink Nests had been gathered here, along with countless Mid-Rank Black Ink Nests. A large number of Black Ink Clansmen stood guard, including the only two true Royal Lords.
Of the two Royal Lords, Mo Yu did not take charge of things. Ever since he got Mo Na Ye to help him deal with the Black Ink Clan’s matters, he spent nearly all of his time inside his Black Ink Nest, strengthening himself.
It had been ages since he last fought against a Human and no one knew just how strong he was now.
News of the situation on each battlefield was transmitted back to the No-Return Pass through the Black Ink Nests.
Mo Na Ye was inside a Grand Hall reading the reports sent in from all the different places. His long bout of gloominess finally eased when he saw the Humans’ casualties across all the fronts.
Previously, he had mounted an attack on Xiao Xiao and Wu Qing to help the Black Ink Giant Spirit God regain its freedom. He thought it would have been an extremely easy task, but alas, the Humans summoned a powerful weapon in the form of a real Giant Spirit God.
Not only did he fail in his mission, but he also freed up the two veteran Ninth-Order Masters. As for the Black Ink Giant Spirit God that he had been banking his hopes on, the newly-summoned Giant Spirit God kept it occupied; thus, the plan backfired on him.
Whenever Mo Na Ye recalled this, his heart would throb in pain. It was as if anything he did would end in defeat if Yang Kai was involved.
After returning from the failure of that incident, Mo Yu had given Mo Na Ye a harsh scolding. Thankfully, Mo Na Ye was also a true Royal Lord now and Mo Yu could not actually do anything to him, but even so, it was enough to make him depressed.
In recent years, Mo Na Ye did not get personally involved in the fighting. He simply stood guard at the No-Return Pass and watched over the Black Ink Clan Army that was fighting against the Humans from afar, and he did manage to produce fairly good results.
This was especially true for E-5 Territory, which he had been targeting. After all the battles over there thus far, the Red Flame Army had lost many of their Masters, including a lot in the Eighth Order.
If this continued, it would take less than a century for the Red Flame Army to be beaten half to death by the Black Ink Clan.
Mo Na Ye did not dream of wiping out the Humans in one fell swoop as he knew that none of the Human Race’s Armies could be underestimated. Even if they did not have a Ninth-Order Master with them, there were still a lot of powerful Masters, including the Divine Spirits who were especially tricky in a fight. Thus, if he wanted to decimate the Red Flame Army, he had to take things one step at a time.
Although the Humans continually added new rising stars to their ranks, as long as the Black Ink Clan acted decisively enough, they could kill off more Masters than what the Humans could produce and the time would eventually come when the Red Flame Army could no longer hold out.
To carry out this strategy, the Black Ink Clan had to make a lot of sacrifices too. Not a single Innate Territory Lord was left behind at the No-Return Pass or the front lines of other battlefields. Under the command of both Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu, all of the Innate Territory Lords who snuck out from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had been turned into Pseudo-Royal Lords using the Source Fusion Technique.
A huge number of Innate Territory Lords had been sacrificed to create a sizeable number of Pseudo-Royal Lords, which was the reason why the Black Ink Clan could still hold out against the Humans; otherwise, how would they be able to maintain the fight on the battlefield when the Humans had Ninth-Order Masters while they did not have any Royal Lords with them?
Furthermore, after all the years of accumulation, the Black Ink Clan was about to witness the birth of new Royal Lords!
During the early days when Mo Na Ye first assumed command over the Black Ink Clan, he had already selected a large group of Territory Lords who had the potential to become Royal Lords and kept them hidden inside the No-Return Pass to cultivate. At long last, he was about to reap the fruits of his labour.
So long as more Royal Lords were born, the Black Ink Clan would be able to make up for the disadvantages they faced due to the Ninth-Order Masters, and when that happened, the Human Race’s situation would become even more disastrous!
[Do the Humans think they’re winning just because they reclaimed a few Great Territories? What a joke!]
Mo Na Ye set down the reports in his hand and leaned back against his chair. He tapped his fingers on his desk with a thoughtful look in his eyes.
He was considering whether he should increase the number of Pseudo-Royal Lords in E-5 Territory to put the Red Flame Army under even more pressure. Right now, the Black Ink Clan was in a position to do so as there were many Pseudo-Royal Lords at the No-Return Pass who were restless and could not stay put. They often came to him to ask for the chance to join the fights, though he rejected them all.
What he wanted was to kill as many of the Humans’ most powerful Masters as possible to weaken them overall. There were often Eighth-Order Masters of the Red Flame Army who willingly sacrificed their lives to injure Pseudo-Royal Lords and force them to leave the battlefield.
Mo Na Ye was more than happy with this situation as he did not care about the deaths of any of the Black Ink Clansmen weaker than Territory Lords. All that mattered was that the Territory Lords and Pseudo-Royal Lords remained alive. Even if they were heavily injured, they just had to return to the No-Return Pass and rest for some time where they would easily be able to make a full recovery.
However, before he could make up his mind, a Territory Lord under his command came barging in.
Mo Na Ye looked at the Territory Lord and frowned. Judging by the look on the latter’s face, he could tell that something bad must have happened.
He was unperturbed by this though. Out on the battlefield, things could change at any moment, and while he had been receiving mostly good news from the front lines, there would still be times when things did not go their way.
After all his years of commanding the Black Ink Clan Army, Mo Na Ye had long since developed the ability to maintain his composure even in the face of the most devastating situations.
His fingers stopped tapping as he asked coolly, “What is it?”
The Territory Lord eyed Mo Na Ye with a worried look and held out a jade slip with both hands, “It’s a message from E-5 Territory! The situation on the battlefield has changed!”
“E-5 Territory?” Mo Na Ye’s eyes flashed with surprise.
The reports he was reading just now had been from E-5 Territory, and according to them, everything was going swimmingly for the Black Ink Clan. The Pseudo-Royal Lords had prepared a strategy to target the Red Flame Army’s leaders and there was a high chance they would be able to kill one of the Army Commanders. Once they succeeded, the Red Flame Army would not only be losing a strong and experienced Eighth-Order Master but the Eastern Army would be left leaderless as well. It would be a huge boost to the Black Ink Clan’s plan to destroy the Red Flame Army, so why would things change all of a sudden?
Mo Na Ye raised his hand and took the jade slip before using his Divine Sense to study it.
The very next breath, Mo Na Ye leapt out of his chair with his eyes the widest they could stretch. He was filled with shock and disbelief as he cried out, “That’s impossible!”
Even when Xiao Xiao used the World Bead and let out the long-slumbering Giant Spirit God, Mo Na Ye had not been as flustered as he was now, and it was all due to how unbelievable the battle report he received was.
He could not believe his eyes and seemed to think he had misread it as he quickly took another look. Alas, his eyes were perfectly fine. The report stated that Yang Kai had suddenly appeared in E-5 Territory before slaughtering Jiang Chi and capturing Hu Yu, along with four other Pseudo-Royal Lords. The Black Ink Clan Army had fled in defeat as they suffered massive casualties. They had gathered back at their main base and were on high alert for possible skirmishes.
[Yang Kai showed up at the E-5 Territory? This must be a bad joke! He’s supposed to be confined inside the Universe Furnace! How could he show up at E-5 Territory?]
Mo Na Ye did not want to believe this, but he scrutinised the report that clearly described everything Yang Kai had done. [He was able to capture five Pseudo-Royal Lords because he used a strange Dao Strength River…]
The so-called Dao Strength River was not at all unfamiliar to Mo Na Ye. Back inside the Universe Furnace, he had gotten into a fight with Yang Kai and knew just how frightening that Dao Strength River was.
During that fight, if Meng Que had not sacrificed his own life to help Mo Na Ye, the latter could very well have been killed by Yang Kai. However, even with Meng Que’s help, Mo Na Ye was only able to prolong the fight for a little while longer before fleeing in defeat and narrowly managing to stay alive.
Mo Na Ye had never seen any other Human using a Dao Strength River apart from Yang Kai.
[Is it really Yang Kai?] Even Mo Na Ye’s heart was quaking, [Why would it be him? How could it be him?]
Mo Na Ye could not figure it out at all, [Isn’t that Bastard supposed to be confined inside the Universe Furnace? Didn’t he have to wait until the next time the Universe Furnace opened to have the chance to come back out? It has only been a few centuries and there has been no sign of the Universe Furnace opening up again, so how did he come out?]
Mo Na Ye was uneasy and his mind was riddled with chaotic thoughts.
It took quite a while before he was able to regain his composure.
Based on the report, it had to have been Yang Kai who showed up at E-5 Territory. He was the only one with a Dao Strength River and only he could capture five Pseudo-Royal Lords alive. No other Ninth-Order Master could do such a thing.
After giving it some more thought, Mo Na Ye realised it was true that there had not been any proof to confirm that Yang Kai was confined inside the Universe Furnace, he had only thought so for two reasons. The first was that, when the Universe Furnace closed up again, he did not see Yang Kai who should have reappeared with him, and that had given him the chance to avoid disaster. Secondly, it was based on the news the Black Ink Clan gleaned out of the Black Ink Disciples.
The Humans also thought that Yang Kai was stuck inside the Universe Furnace; otherwise, there was no reason why he did not show up after so many years since the Universe Furnace’s closure.
However, no one could be sure whether or not he was indeed confined inside the Universe Furnace as no one saw it for themselves.
Moreover, even if Yang Kai had been stuck inside the Universe Furnace, it was not necessarily true that he had to wait for it to open up again before he could escape… [That Bastard always has some mysterious trick up his sleeve that allows him to do things no one else can.]
Mo Na Ye rubbed his temples, feeling like his head was about to explode. His cheerful mood from earlier had vanished entirely.
All along, he thought he would no longer have to deal with Yang Kai, the thorn in his side. Over the last few centuries, he accepted the possibility of Yang Kai being locked up inside the Universe Furnace as fact; however, now that the battle report was right before his eyes, the terror that had been buried deep inside his heart was pouring out again.
He was not afraid of any of the other Ninth-Order Masters, be it the newer ones or the two more experienced ones; Yang Kai, the one behind his suffering and numerous defeats, was the only one he was truly wary of.
There was no point for him to continue with his earlier considerations now. Since Yang Kai had shown up at E-5 Territory, things were not going to go according to the Black Ink Clan’s plans anymore. As someone who fought against Yang Kai inside the Universe Furnace, Mo Na Ye knew Yang Kai’s strength better than anyone else.
The report from E-5 Territory clearly stated that Jiang Chi had been killed and five other Pseudo-Royal Lords, including Hu Yu, had been captured. Mo Na Ye knew without a doubt what their fate would be.
Thus, he swiftly gave the order, “Send a message back to E-5 Territory. Tell the Pseudo-Royal Lords to group up and keep a close eye on Yang Kai. Don’t let him get a chance to strike again.”
The Territory Lord left to do as told.
However, a few moments later, he came running back again. Seeing the ashen look on his face, Mo Na Ye had a bad feeling. He gritted his teeth and asked, “What happened now?”
The Territory Lord hung his head low and held out another jade slip with trembling hands. His voice quivered as he informed, “A second report came from E-5 Territory…”
Mo Na Ye glanced at the jade slip but did not check it right away. First, he took a deep breath.
If a second report was sent so soon after the first, it could only mean one thing. Mo Na Ye knew that something terrible must have happened in E-5 Territory. More importantly, the Black Ink Clan had to have been the ones who suffered; otherwise, they would not have sent two reports in a row within such a short period.
The situation was probably even worse than he feared!
Mo Na Ye slowly took a seat before taking the jade slip. He composed himself and checked the dispatch. Despite being mentally prepared for it, he nearly fainted from the latest report.
The previous one stated that Yang Kai showed up at E-5 Territory, slaughtered Jiang Chi, and captured five Pseudo-Royal Lords, including Hu Yu.
This second report said that Yang Kai had snuck up on the remaining Pseudo-Royal Lords despite their vigilance. He withstood the attacks of all of them and used the Dao Strength River to capture two more Pseudo-Royal Lords. None of the Pseudo-Royal Lords had noticed him approaching and there had been no sign of him at all before his appearance.
In just half a day, the Black Ink Clan lost eight Pseudo-Royal Lords in E-5 Territory. Even though there were many of them posted there, it did not mean that the Black Ink Clan could afford to let them be killed off in such rapid succession.
The surviving Pseudo-Royal Lords knew the situation was dire and had retreated from E-5 Territory immediately after the second raid. Many of the Territory Lords followed suit and were fleeing as well.
Though the report did not mention the rest of the Black Ink Clan Army in E-5 Territory, it made no difference.
Since the Pseudo-Royal Lords and a majority of the Territory Lords had fled, the Army could only offer their heads up to the enemy if they stuck around any longer. Mo Na Ye was certain that they were already fleeing in defeat as well, but the Humans would not be merciful given this incredibly rare opportunity. He could foresee how bloody the chase would be. Without the more powerful Black Ink Clansmen, the Black Ink Clan Army would not be able to put up any resistance against the Human Race Army.
Many emotions flashed across Mo Na Ye’s face as he sat there after reading the second report, ultimately crushing the jade slip by accident in the end.
The Territory Lord carefully eyed Mo Na Ye’s expression as he asked, “Sir, should we order the army in E-5 Territory to retreat?”
He knew that the situation did not look good for the Black Ink Clan and was worried about their Army.
Mo Na Ye just took a deep breath and slowly shook his head, “They can’t retreat.”
Even if others did not know what Yang Kai was capable of, he did. The Black Ink Clan had set up their base near the Territory Gate because it made it easy for them to deploy more manpower or make a quick retreat. If they did fail to hold out against their enemy, they could withdraw through the Territory Gate and prevent further losses.
However, that was no longer possible with Yang Kai around. He, who was unmatched in the Dao of Space, would surely lock down the Territory Gate at once.
There was a high chance that a mass slaughter was taking place in E-5 Territory at this very moment!
Mo Na Ye did not know how many members of the Black Ink Clan would successfully escape, but the only silver lining was the fact that the Pseudo-Royal Lords had fled in advance with many of the Territory Lords as well. Although the losses were heavy, it was not a complete massacre of everyone there. Furthermore, the ones who escaped in time were the more powerful ones, so it was a bit of good news amidst all the bad.
That being said, Yang Kai was bound to hunt the Pseudo-Royal Lords down. While they might have escaped for now, they were not entirely out of danger yet.
Mo Na Ye composed himself and gave the order, “Send word out for everyone to be on high alert for any sign of Yang Kai. If there is even the slightest hint of him, report back to me right away!”
“Yes, Sir!” The Territory Lord replied before leaving to carry out the order.
Soon, a slew of reports were transmitted back to the No-Return Pass.
Yang Kai had left E-5 Territory and entered Silver Frost Territory…
Yang Kai showed up in Thunderbolt Territory, found the Black Ink Clan’s forward outpost there, and was swiftly making his way over…
The Black Ink Clan lost contact with a mining Squad in Sun Dragon Territory and suspected that they had been eliminated by Yang Kai…
…
As the reports gathered in front of Mo Na Ye, he fixed his eyes on the Universe Chart and mapped out Yang Kai’s movements. Soon, he figured out Yang Kai’s true intentions.
[The No-Return Pass!]
[He’s heading straight for the No-Return Pass!]
Mo Na Ye’s expression darkened, though it was not a complete surprise to him. Yang Kai had often shown up at the No-Return Pass to cause trouble even when he was only an Eighth-Order Master. He was the perfect example of someone who had both brains and brawn, as well as the boldness to go with them. Now that he was a Ninth-Order Master, he was even less wary of the Black Ink Clan. Sooner or later, he would have shown up at the No-Return Pass.
Nevertheless, Mo Na Ye did not expect Yang Kai to be this impatient and head straight for the No-Return Pass after helping the Red Flame Army at E-5 Territory. Based on the reports he received from the various Great Territories, Yang Kai did not seem to be pausing for anything, save for dealing with the Black Ink Clansmen he happened to encounter along the way.
[That Bastard sure has the guts!]
Mo Na Ye was shocked and also a little expectant.
Yang Kai’s confidence also provided the Black Ink Clan with a chance to deal with him. To arrive at the No-Return Pass, Yang Kai would need to pass through the Barren Territory Territory Gate; thus, the Black Ink Clan could set up an ambush in advance there and catch him off guard the moment he appeared. They had a fighting chance of taking him down if all the powerful Masters at the No-Return Pass joined forces.
The Black Ink Clan had attempted this strategy before. They had set up a Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array at the Territory Gate in advance and isolated the surrounding space; however, Yang Kai did not appear at the Territory Gate back then. He used some kind of method that allowed him to travel through a path that the Black Ink Clan did not know about, and appeared on the Black Ink Battlefield instead, which led to the failure of that plan.
However, things were not the same now. At the time, Yang Kai was an Eighth-Order Master who was vigilant enough to take precautions. Now that Yang Kai was a Ninth-Order Master and his power multiplied many times over, Mo Na Ye was fairly certain that the former had become rather arrogant. Based on Yang Kai’s movements, he was bound to enter the No-Return Pass through the Territory Gate, so the Black Ink Clan had an opportunity.
With this thought in mind, Mo Na Ye quickly went to meet with Mo Yu, who was currently cultivating in seclusion, and informed him about Yang Kai.
Mo Yu was stunned, furious, and sorrowful over the news that Yang Kai had shown up at E-5 Territory, killed numerous Pseudo-Royal Lords, and caused the loss of the majority of the Black Ink Clan Army stationed over there.
He did not care about the Black Ink Clan Army’s casualties, only the deaths of the Pseudo-Royal Lords, but even that was hard to accept. Ever since all the Innate Territory Lords that snuck out of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction had been turned into Pseudo-Royal Lords, the Black Ink Clan had no way of increasing the number of Pseudo-Royal Lords they had.
After several centuries of not hearing any news about Yang Kai, Mo Yu thought he would never have to see that Human again. Who would have thought that Yang Kai would show up in such a manner and cause such heavy losses for the Black Ink Clan?
It was just as Mo Na Ye had said once, it was one thing to deal with Yang Kai if he was still an Eighth-Order Master, but after he became a Ninth-Order Master, he had become the Black Ink Clan’s most formidable opponent.
However, when Mo Na Ye informed Mo Yu of his plan, Mo Yu could see that it was a good opportunity as well and readily agreed to it.
All at once, the Pseudo-Royal Lords at the No-Return Pass, along with Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu, the two true Royal Lords, began setting up outside the Territory Gate before waiting with dire expressions.
While they were busy setting up their trap, Yang Kai was steadily making his way across many Great Territories where the Universe Worlds seemed to be lifeless as they were all covered in Black Ink Strength. He could not detect any vitality from them.
Yang Kai knew that his movements were not hidden from the Black Ink Clan right now, but he did not intend to hide from them in the first place; after all, the Black Ink Clan would not have been able to discover his tracks if he used Thunder Shadow’s Innate Divine Ability.
He was making this trip to the No-Return Pass to stir things up and take back a few things while he was at it.
Yang Kai made his way through one Great Territory after another, dealing with any of the Black Ink Clan’s outposts that he stumbled across along the way. At last, after over a month of travelling, Yang Kai passed through the Territory Gate from the Shattered Heaven to the Barren Territory.
Similar to its name, the Barren Territory was empty and devoid of everything. All along, the Humans considered it an important battleground and prepared it appropriately. The leaders at the Supreme Headquarters had long since fleshed out the idea of besieging the No-Return Pass, and the moment they did, the Barren Territory would be where the ultimate battle was fought. The final confrontation between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan would take place here.
Millennia ago, the Human Race Army had achieved great results when the Black Ink Clan first invaded this place, and if it had not been for the Black Ink Giant Spirit God’s interference, breaking through the boundary wall between the Barren Territory and Wind Mist Territory, the Black Ink Clan would not have been able to invade the 3,000 Worlds so easily.
The bodies of countless Masters from both sides littered the battlefield back then. It was also the final resting place of many top Masters, including both Ninth-Order Old Ancestors and Royal Lords.
The moment Yang Kai stepped into the Barren Territory, he sensed alarming shockwaves coming from a place deep within the void. Though the waves were somewhat spaced out, each one was powerful enough to make his heart pound and the surrounding area shake.
He focused his sight and stared into the distance, only to find four towering silhouettes clashing in the depths of the void. The fight was intense and space itself was crumbling around them.
A fight between a Giant Spirit God and a Black Ink Giant Spirit God did not involve any kind of tactics or even any form of techniques. It was a completely physical fight with simple punches and slaps thrown around.
However, as both parties possessed Heaven-destroying and Earth-shattering strength, even such a simple physical battle was enough to cause terrifying impact and fallout.
It was not surprising that Mi Jing Lun said the battle in the Barren Territory resulted in needless losses for the Black Ink Clan. If the Black Ink Clan at the No-Return Pass wanted to send soldiers out as reinforcements to the various front lines, they would need to pass through the Barren Territory, and considering how strong the aftershocks of the fight were, weaker Black Ink Clansmen would not be able to survive unless they had powerful Masters protecting them.
This was an unexpected but pleasant surprise. When Yang Kai gave that World Bead to Old Ancestor Xiao Xiao, he had only done so as a means of countering the Black Ink Clan’s possible strategy. He did not expect it to result in such a boon for the Humans.
The four Giant Spirit Gods were split up onto two different battlefields. Yang Kai spotted Ah Da, who was bald, and Ah Er, who had a lock of hair.
As for the two Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods, Yang Kai had to spend some time figuring out which was which.
The one Ah Da was up against was most likely the one who was revived from the Late Ancient Era Battlefield, while the one fighting against Ah Er was the one from the Divine Spirit Ancestral Land. Though the two Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods looked similar at first glance, upon closer inspection, there were still minor differences that one could pick up on.
Initially, the Black Ink Clan had a third Black Ink Giant Spirit God, which was the one that escaped from the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction. Nevertheless, many Human Race Masters had joined forces and defeated that one in the Barren Territory, which was something to celebrate. Otherwise, if the Black Ink Clan had another Black Ink Giant Spirit God with them now, the Human Race would be in an extremely difficult predicament.
The clash between the Giant Spirit Gods stirred up Yang Kai’s urge to join the fight, but he had to force himself to quell that desire of his.
He still had some self-awareness. Despite being a Ninth-Order Master now and possessing strength that seemed to touch the limits of Martial Dao, it was still not enough for him to go up against a being as strong as a Giant Spirit God.
If he did insert himself into the fight, he would only end up fleeing in defeat.
Furthermore, if he was not mistaken, the Black Ink Clan at the No-Return Pass would have already set up the stage for him to put on a grand show!
Thus, he decided to stay out of the battle between the four Giant Spirit Gods. He cupped his hand around his mouth and hollered, “Ah Da, Ah Er, fight!”
His voice rang like a dragon’s roar and spread far and wide.
Ah Da, who was in the middle of his battle, could not resist turning his head around to take a look, but he ended up being caught off guard as his opponent landed a punch against his face which caused him to stagger.
Infuriated, Ah Da steadied himself and bent down before charging at his opponent and grabbing him by the waist. He landed a series of blows with his elbows and knees which caused the Black Ink Giant Spirit God to stumble. Then, Ah Da climbed on top of his opponent and began pounding the latter with his fists. The pummelling was so intense that every punch rang out like thunder across the entire Barren Territory.
Yang Kai’s eyes twitched at the sight.
[I better not disturb them…]
He then suppressed his aura and started rushing towards the Territory Gate to the No-Return Pass.
There were many Black Ink Clansmen on guard at the Territory Gate all the time. This was not only to maintain control over the Territory Gate but also to keep an eye on the fight between the Giant Spirit Gods; thus, when they heard Yang Kai’s voice, their expressions stiffened as they immediately rushed through the Territory Gate and headed back to the No-Return Pass.
Soon, the news of Yang Kai’s appearance in the Barren Territory reached Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu. The two Royal Lords had grim expressions as they exchanged looks.
[That Bastard came all the way here after all! Even though he’s now a Ninth-Order Master, if he does pass through the Territory Gate, we might have the chance to take him down.]
The trap for Yang Kai was already in place, and once Mo Na Ye gave the order, the Black Ink Clansmen got into their positions.
Yang Kai whizzed through the Barren Territory and arrived at the Territory Gate that led to the No-Return Pass. He glanced at it and stepped through without even pausing.
As soon as he did, Space Principles enveloped him and he felt everything around him shake ever so slightly. The sight before him blurred for a moment, and at the very next moment, he popped up in front of the No-Return Pass.
All at once, dozens of powerful auras shot at him from all directions to lock him in place. Two of them stood out among the rest.
Yang Kai smirked as he studied Mo Yu and Mo Na Ye, the two Royal Lords, with a strange feeling in his heart.
In the past, he came to raise chaos at the No-Return Pass a few times, but he always snuck around and took extreme precautions to avoid being discovered whenever possible; however, he could now afford to walk right in without needing to be cautious at all. He could openly step through the Territory Gate and make his way to the No-Return Pass.
The Black Ink Clan did not attack Yang Kai right away as there was no point in doing so. The Territory Gate was right behind him and he could return to the Barren Territory at any time. Even though the Black Ink Clan gathered every available Master here, they did not feel confident about their ability to take him down immediately.
They knew their best chance to strike was not when Yang Kai first showed up and had planned accordingly; thus, they patiently waited…
The atmosphere was incredibly tense.
Mo Na Ye’s expression was the grimmest it could be. Even though he could tell from the various dispatches that it was indeed Yang Kai who showed up in E-5 Territory and all the other Great Territories along the way, he still harboured the barest glimmer of hope that the reports had been mistaken as he had not seen Yang Kai himself. However, now that Yang Kai was before his very eyes, even that glimmer of hope was dashed.
[He’s really back…]
As someone who suffered multiple miserable losses at Yang Kai’s hands, Mo Na Ye was more cautious of him than anyone else.
“That’s it?” Yang Kai abruptly chuckled in the middle of the standoff. He thought the Black Ink Clan would attack him the moment he appeared and had not thought they would be able to hold themselves back so well. However, he had an idea as to why they did not attack him. The Territory Gate was right behind him, so if they did attack him, he could still make an easy retreat.
His taunting smile aggravated many from the Black Ink Clan and most of the auras that had honed in on him grew aggressive.
Ever since the Black Ink Clan’s invasion into the 3,000 Worlds, the Human Race had been the ones at a disadvantage. No Human had ever been this arrogant when standing right on the doorstep of the Black Ink Clan’s greatest stronghold. The Black Ink Clan naturally felt deeply humiliated.
“You’ve got quite the nerve, Yang Kai!” Mo Na Ye coldly snorted.
Yang Kai studied Mo Na Ye for a moment as if it were his first time seeing the latter before remarking, “And you’re quite lucky!”
Mo Na Ye frowned, and soon, he realised what Yang Kai meant. When the Universe Furnace closed up, Mo Na Ye thought that he was doomed to die. He had been badly injured at the time so if Yang Kai had returned to the same spot as him, he would not have been able to put up a fight. Yang Kai would have killed him off at once.
He was indeed rather lucky to be able to stand here now. Mo Na Ye did not know what Yang Kai had gone through and why he was only returning after all these years, but either way, he had barely managed to escape from Yang Kai with his life the last time they met.
“You’re quite lucky yourself!” Mo Na Ye snapped back coolly. He looked into Yang Kai’s cultivation journey and realised that the latter was what the Humans considered someone blessed by destiny. Yang Kai had stumbled across many opportunities throughout his cultivation journey; otherwise, he would not have been able to rise as quickly as he did.
Yang Kai grinned, “Luck is also a form of strength.” Then, his eyes flitted around him as he taunted, “What’s wrong? Weren’t all of you waiting for me? I’m here now. Aren’t you going to attack?”
[What’s the point of attacking you now!?] Mo Na Ye growled to himself, [Take a few steps forward, if you dare!]
To ensure that their plan could be executed flawlessly, they had to find a way to get Yang Kai away from the Territory Gate first; otherwise, if Yang Kai was unwilling to engage in battle with them, the trap that they set up would go to waste.
“Oh, I get it now,” Yang Kai commented, seemingly to himself, “You’re afraid I’ll run off, right?”
As soon as he said that, he waved his hand, and as Space Principles vibrated, the Territory Gate behind him suddenly started shaking. At the very next moment, the Territory Gate began freezing up like a lake in winter. In the blink of an eye, the Territory Gate that had remained stable for countless years was completely frozen, the swirling ripples on its surface now completely locked in place.
[!!!]
Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu were stupefied, and all the other Pseudo-Royal Lords were agape as well.
[What the Hell… is he doing?]
“How about now?” Yang Kai smirked at the Black Ink Clan.
“Begin!” Mo Na Ye roared at once.
Though they were boggled by Yang Kai’s actions, they believed that he was still too arrogant for cutting off his only path of retreat. Their original plan involved luring Yang Kai away from the Territory Gate to avoid letting him escape at any given moment, but since they no longer had to worry about that, Mo Na Ye did not hesitate anymore.
Since Yang Kai had voluntarily made the situation work in the Black Ink Clan’s favour, Mo Na Ye was not going to disappoint him.
As soon as his roar rang out, a series of powerful attacks shot out from all directions as nearly 20 silhouettes dashed towards Yang Kai. These were all Pseudo-Royal Lords.
Furthermore, they were not the only ones around as 12 more Pseudo-Royal Lords were tasked with powering the Grand Array. They quickly moved with the intention of setting up a Heaven Sealing Earth Locking Grand Array. Once they got into position, with the help of the Array Boards and Banners they held, they could lock up the local space, making it impossible for Yang Kai to escape.
Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu attacked as well. Since they were up against an opponent as formidable as Yang Kai, neither of the Royal Lords held back as they unleashed their full strength.
Instantly, Black Ink Strength flooded over from all directions as a myriad of Secret Techniques showered down on Yang Kai.
A loud Dragon Roar rang out as golden light shot out. This was followed by some commotion, and the moment the Pseudo-Royal Lords got near Yang Kai, they suddenly realised that the originally small Human had transformed into something a lot more massive.
He was covered in Golden Dragon Scales and his Dragon Beard fluttered in the aura wind. A pair of intimidating Dragon Horns grew out of his forehead and intense Dragon Pressure emanated from him, seemingly solidifying the Void around him.
“A Divine Dragon?”
Mo Yu, who was launching off a Secret Technique at Yang Kai, was completely taken aback and his face twitched at the sight.
He did know that Yang Kai was a Ninth-Order Master and could take a Dragon Form, but when did he become a Divine Dragon?
Mo Yu had taken part in the first battle at the No-Return Pass and could still remember the power of the Divine Dragons from back then, both of whom were even stronger than the average Ninth-Order Human Master. He had once suffered at the hands of the previous Head of the Dragon Clan.
[He’s both a Ninth-Order Master and a Divine Dragon!? Just how strong is he now?!]
“Let me see what you can do!” Yang Kai roared. After switching into his Dragon Form, his thirst for battle intensified!
After becoming a Ninth-Order Master, he had only had an all-out fight once against Mo Na Ye, and even though he won that battle, his enemy was not in peak condition.
Yang Kai was already heavily injured at the time; furthermore, he had just used the Three Selves Source Reconstitution Art to combine with his two other Selves; thus, he did not have the time to stabilize his cultivation and could not wield his full power.
Centuries had passed since then and his cultivation realm had been solidified. Yang Kai was at his peak right now, and the only way he could test his limits, apart from doing it here at the No-Return Pass, was to challenge a Black Ink Giant Spirit God.
However, a Black Ink Giant Spirit God was too powerful and Yang Kai figured he would not be able to take one on, so it was best for him to target the No-Return Pass instead.
That was the reason why Yang Kai chose not to travel stealthily.
He wanted to know what his current limits were! Furthermore, for certain reasons, this fight was unavoidable for him as well.
Yang Kai roared as he stretched out in a grabbing motion. Considering Yang Kai’s size right now, even just a Dragon Claw of his was enough to cover half the sky.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords who were in that direction immediately saw the world darkening around them as the gigantic shadow loomed over their heads. It was accompanied by an immense sense of pressure that made them quake. It was the Dragon Pressure of a Divine Dragon and it weighed down on them so heavily that their knees nearly buckled.
Space-Time Dao Strength began surging as Time was thrown into disarray and Space warped. The Pseudo-Royal Lords’ senses were thrown completely off and they could not dodge in time; thus, Yang Kai caught them with his Dragon Claw.
Yang Kai tightened his Dragon Claw with a powerful squeeze that resulted in the sound of bones cracking, followed by a litany of pained cries.
Just as Yang Kai grabbed onto the Pseudo-Royal Lords, the attacks from the Black Ink Clan landed on him as well. Even though Yang Kai had thick skin and strong flesh, the attacks still managed to make him shake and tremble.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords were not to be underestimated; furthermore, the attacks from two Royal Lords were also in the mix. All in all, it was an avalanche of formidable attacks that blasted off his Dragon Scales.
There were pros and cons to having a massive body. The good thing about it was that regardless of what Yang Kai did, even the simple action of clawing at his enemies was shockingly grand and powerful. On the other hand, the downside was that it was hard for him to dodge attacks.
Nevertheless, a Divine Dragon’s physical body was exceedingly strong, and with the protection of his Dragon Scales, Yang Kai was able to withstand their torrent attacks for now, though there was no telling how long he would actually be able to hold out.
As the Black Ink Clan unleashed their attacks in full force, the Pseudo-Royal Lords that Yang Kai had caught were also beginning to fight back. Though they had accidentally allowed themselves to be captured, they were still Pseudo-Royal Lords and would not die so easily. They began channeling their power and using their Secret Techniques to batter Yang Kai.
With the help of Mo Na Ye and the others, the Pseudo-Royal Lords who had been caught inside Yang Kai’s Dragon Claw were finally able to escape three breaths later.
Nevertheless, they bore expressions of lingering fear. The moment they had been caught, they thought they were going to die. Even though they managed to escape, they were all heavily injured as Yang Kai’s clutch had not been for nothing.
The gigantic Dragon Form loomed large just outside the No-Return Pass and the silhouettes that flew around him looked like flies. The fight that broke out in a flash intensified even further.
This was Yang Kai’s first time taking on his Dragon Form after becoming a Divine Dragon. From the eyes of a Divine Dragon, everything in the vicinity looked incredibly small. He could not help but feel an innate sense of pride. It was as if all the tiny beings around him could not even withstand the slightest blow from him.
All of a sudden, he realised why the Divine Spirits tended to be so arrogant. For one thing, they were the first generation of rulers under the Heavens, giving them a sense of superiority over all others. Secondly, they possessed enormous bodies and incredible power. It made sense that they did not view other beings as equals.
This was entirely due to the strength of Divine Spirits and had nothing to do with their personal character. Yang Kai realised it now. Though he did want to find out what his limits were, he was not about to underestimate the Black Ink Clan. The situation could very well backfire on him if he viewed them as nothing more than pesky flies.
Battles between Masters were never easy, and although Yang Kai unleashed a series of Dragon Clan Secret Techniques, the situation did not look good for him. He was up against too many opponents and they were all powerful in their own right. Soon, he was bleeding all over.
During the intense fight, Yang Kai kept scanning the area around him. At some point, he turned his massive Dragon Form around and his Dragon Tail swept across a specific spot where a Pseudo-Royal Lord who was carrying an Array Board had not gotten into his position yet, hurling him away with ferocious force.
Mo Na Ye ground his teeth.
They needed the Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array to deal with Yang Kai. Even though it looked as if Yang Kai was suffering under their relentless attacks, without the Grand Array to seal the local Space, he would be able to leave whenever he wished and no one would be able to stop him.
Thus, as soon as the fight broke out, the Pseudo-Royal Lords who were in charge of arranging the Grand Array had begun moving. They only had one Array Board left to put in place before activating it, but they failed to do so at the last moment.
[He sensed it a long time ago and had his guard up the whole time!] Mo Na Ye deduced.
That was indeed the case. Yang Kai had detected the Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array the moment he appeared at the Territory Gate. He did not seal the Territory Gate out of foolish overconfidence, however; instead, he wanted to use it to make the fight break out on his terms.
If he did not seal the Territory Gate, the Black Ink Clan would not have made their move this quickly, despite how many of them there were. They would wait until he entered the Grand Array first.
By sealing the Territory Gate, Yang Kai had cut off his path of retreat, but at the same time, he forced the Black Ink Clan’s hand. Thus, the Spirit Array that the Black Ink Clan had set up beforehand was no longer of any use and they had to re-position themselves before trying again.
All Yang Kai needed to do now was to keep his guard up against the Grand Array and prevent them from activating it. As long as he did that, it was basically impossible for him to be defeated here.
Dragon Roars echoed across the void as Secret Techniques flew in all directions. Numerous silhouettes flitted about as the Pseudo-Royal Lords fought with great caution. They dared not give Yang Kai the chance to strike them dead-on. While their attacks did land on Yang Kai, they did not seem to do much harm to him. On the other hand, if Yang Kai found the right opportunity to hit them, just a simple attack from him could very well leave them heavily injured.
Only Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu, the two true Royal Lords, posed any real threat to Yang Kai on their own. That being said, the longer these two fought, the more frightened they became.
Yang Kai looked as if he was injured and bedraggled, but he remained as spirited as ever; in fact, it felt as if the longer he fought, the more powerful he became.
Mo Na Ye had fought against Yang Kai back inside the Universe Furnace and had suffered badly at the latter’s hands at the time, but even he knew that Yang Kai was not at his best back then and could not wield his full strength. Thus, Mo Na Ye had done his best to avoid underestimating Yang Kai’s power.
However, at this moment, he realised that Yang Kai was much stronger than even he imagined.
No one had ever possessed the combined power of a Ninth-Order cultivation and a Divine Dragon physique before. Furthermore, when Yang Kai ascended to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm, he also absorbed the Small Universe that belonged to Fang Tian Ci. On top of all that, what Yang Kai found inside the Universe Furnace allowed him to enhance his proficiency over many Grand Daos, greatly bolstering his strength.
No ordinary Ninth-Order Master was anywhere near as powerful as him.
Mo Yu was not as calm as he seemed to be either. Even just a couple thousand years ago, he had been able to toy with Yang Kai like a predator playing with its prey as the latter was far too weak to fight him head-on. However, in just a short amount of time, Yang Kai had already grown this strong.
Based on what Mo Yu saw of Yang Kai’s power now, he knew he would not be able to engage the latter in a one-on-one fight.
[Don’t Humans need a lot of time to increase their heritage once they rise up to a higher cultivation realm? This bastard became a Ninth-Order Master inside the Universe Furnace just a few centuries ago. He’s still a newly promoted Ninth-Order Master yet he’s already this strong! What will he be like if he is given even more time to grow?]
The stronger Yang Kai seemed now, the more alarmed the Black Ink Clan was.
Several more Pseudo-Royal Lords were swept off into the distance; however, Mo Yu and Mo Na Ye’s expressions brightened as they finally found their chance. In the next instant, they joined forces and fired off fearsome Secret Techniques at the Golden Dragon.
Black Ink Strength exploded as hundreds of Dragon Scales were blown off to reveal the body hidden beneath them, sending the massive Dragon reeling backwards.
[We did it!]
The two Royal Lords were smiling happily at first, but their smiles froze immediately after they saw Yang Kai’s enormous figure crash into a Black Ink Nest.
It was a High-Rank Black Ink Nest…
The towering High-Rank Black Ink Nest could not withstand such force and was instantly flattened.
There was a flash of golden light as Yang Kai transformed back into his Human Form and got to his feet. He then reached out and grabbed a figure that was caught within the destroyed Black Ink Nest.
It was a Territory Lord whose aura was fluctuating. It was evident that he was still a little dazed from the destruction of the Black Ink Nest; however, his expression changed the moment he saw Yang Kai’s face.
Yang Kai glanced at the Territory Lord before wiping off the blood from his lips, his eyes flashed as he looked up at the Black Ink Clansmen who rushed over.
The Two Royal Lords were in the lead while the rest of the Pseudo-Royal Lords followed close behind, just several thousand kilometres away.
With how strong everyone was, the distance of several thousand kilometres was basically the same as being face-to-face.
Mo Na Ye pursed his lips with a gloomy expression on his face. By now, he figured out that Yang Kai had simply gone along with the attacks and had purposely crashed into the High-Rank Black Ink Nest, which was the foundation upon which the Black Ink Clan had built itself. Although the Innate Territory Lords had brought a lot of High-Rank Black Ink Nests with them when they came out of the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, quite a large number of those had been used up to create Pseudo-Royal Lords. Every remaining High-Rank Black Ink Nest right now was incredibly precious as they had no way of replacing them once they were lost.
This time, the Black Ink Clan did not attack Yang Kai. Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu both knew that their plan to kill Yang Kai had failed. Based on the strength that Yang Kai had exhibited earlier, they had no way of restraining him and setting up the Four Gates Eight Palaces Great Pagoda Array; therefore, there was no reason for them to keep the fight going.
A moment later, Mo Na Ye growled, “Let him go!”
Yang Kai tapped his head and queried mockingly, “Are you sleep-talking?”
As he spoke, he squeezed his hand and the Territory Lord he captured instantly exploded into a cloud of blood.
Mo Na Ye was seething with rage, but in the end, he was able to hold himself back.
Yang Kai looked around at all the High-Rank Black Ink Nests and grinned, “It looks to me that you’re about to have the new generation of Royal Lords. Allow me to offer my congratulations in advance.”
The aura of the Territory Lord he caught earlier had been unusually strong, which made it clear that he was no ordinary Territory Lord. He was one of those who could become a Royal Lord, and the Black Ink Clan clearly had a lot of hope in him. That was why they arranged for him to cultivate inside a High-Rank Black Ink Nest.
However, regardless of what he could have become, he was dead now.
There were quite a few High-Rank Black Ink Nests at the No-Return Pass. At the very least, there were 300 of them. Some of them housed Pseudo-Royal Lords who were recuperating from their injuries, but many of them had Territory Lords cultivating inside. The Black Ink Clan’s future would be bleak if all of these High-Rank Black Ink Nests were somehow destroyed.
Upon seeing the calculating look in Yang Kai’s eyes, the Black Ink Clan grew nervous. The earlier fight had allowed them to realise just how strong Yang Kai was, and if he was hellbent on targeting these High-Rank Black Ink Nests, they had no good way of stopping him. It was hard to secure everything in the middle of a fight and they could very well lose even more High-Rank Black Ink Nests.
Thankfully, Yang Kai did not act out. He dusted the dirt off his hands and glanced at Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu, “Let’s end the fight here for today. I can’t do much to you and you can’t keep me here either. I’ll be off then!”
Thus, with a wave of his hand, he turned and left.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords turned to the two Royal Lords as they awaited their orders.
It took all of Mo Na Ye’s willpower to hold himself back, and in the end, he did not say anything. Nevertheless, his heart was filled with vexation and a sense of helplessness over what Yang Kai did to them at the No-Return Pass. One man alone barged into their home, destroyed a High-Rank Black Ink Nest and killed a fine candidate who could have become a Royal Lord, then left without so much as a care.
In the past, the Black Ink Clan was annoyed by Yang Kai’s propensity for messing with them at the No-Return Pass, but they were still able to put a stop to it then. However, now that he was a Ninth-Order Master, the Black Ink Clan did not seem to have a way to stop him anymore. This was the reason behind the sense of hopelessness they felt.
Mo Na Ye could not help but regret the fact that he had not been more cautious of Yang Kai in the past. They would not be in this unfortunate predicament now if they had found a way to kill him back then.
However, based on the information they gleaned from the Black Ink Disciples in the past, the Eighth Order was supposed to be Yang Kai’s limit. No one would have thought that the legendary Universe Furnace would suddenly open up just as the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan were carefully building up their Armies in preparation for their ultimate showdown, which led to Yang Kai becoming a Ninth-Order Master.
At the end of the day, Mo Na Ye did not have the power to see the future. At the time, he was entirely focused on creating more Royal Lords which meant that the threat of an Eighth-Order Master such as Yang Kai would naturally diminish and he would not have to specifically target this Human menace.
When the Universe Furnace appeared, the Black Ink Clan did attempt to target Yang Kai and put in a lot of effort to do so, but they ended up failing and being the ones who suffered a great loss instead.
“Did he come here just to take a beating?” Mo Yu stared off in the direction Yang Kai had left with his brow tightly knitted as he commented in confusion, “Why is he heading deeper into the Black Ink Battlefield?”
Mo Na Ye could not figure out what Yang Kai was up to either. He considered all of the things Yang Kai had done so far and thought to himself, [That bastard’s always so hard to decipher…]
“Damn it!” All of a sudden, Mo Na Ye whipped his head around and growled, “The Territory Gate!”
Mo Na Ye had been too caught up in the fight with Yang Kai that he did not spare much thought for anything else, but now that things had settled down, it dawned on him that they had a grave problem on their hands.
Yang Kai had used his Space Secret Technique to seal off the Territory Gate!
He had done this before when he returned from the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon and gathered the remnants of what was left of the Human Race Army outside the No-Return Pass before leading them to charge through the No-Return Pass and into the Barren Territory. Back then, Yang Kai wheeled around after accomplishing his goal and invaded the No-Return Pass once more to save Ji Lao San, who had been captured.
When Yang Kai made his way back from the Barren Territory, he used some Secret Technique to seal up the Territory Gate. At the time, he had only just become an Eighth-Order Master so both his abilities and his mastery over the Dao of Space were nowhere near what they were now, so it had taken him some significant effort.
After rescuing Ji Lao San, Yang Kai brought the former to the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield and used a secret passageway in the Blue Sky Theatre to return to Black Territory.
When that happened, the Black Ink Clan had to put in a lot of effort to reopen the Territory Gate.
Yang Kai had not done anything like that since, until now.
The No-Return Pass was the Black Ink Clan’s main base and largest spawning ground. Many from the Black Ink Clan were being born here at any given moment and they constantly sent out reinforcements to the front lines. The injured Pseudo-Royal Lords would also return to the No-Return Pass to slumber and recover when they were injured.
Now that the Territory Gate was sealed, it meant that the No-Return Pass had been cut off from the rest of the 3,000 Worlds. This greatly threatened the Black Ink Clan Army which was still out fighting in the 3,000 Worlds.
Even though the Black Ink Clan had an exceedingly high number of Masters and could muster up enough force to break open the Territory Gate once more, it would take time for them to do so!
The situation out on the battlefield could change at any moment, so they could not afford to waste any time at all.
In the blink of an eye, all manner of thoughts raced through Mo Na Ye’s mind.
All at once, he realised that this could have been Yang Kai’s main reason for coming over to the No-Return Pass!
Nevertheless, even if he figured this out now, nothing changed. The Territory Gate was still sealed and the Black Ink Clan had to find a way to break it open again as soon as possible.
And so, under the command of Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu, the Black Ink Clan began attacking the Territory Gate. Immense force surged as the Black Ink Clan felt as if they had swallowed a fly.
In the void some distance away from the No-Return Pass, Yang Kai came to a stop atop a Universe Fragment where he adjusted his breathing and began to tend to his injuries.
As a result of going up against that many Black Ink Clan Masters alone, he had taken a heavy beating. If it had not been for the thick skin and strong flesh he had thanks to his Dragon Form, he would not have been able to hold out as long as he did. Although he injured some of the Pseudo-Royal Lords, he lamented the fact that he could not kill any of them.
Alas, he had not been in a position to do so at the time.
In any case, he accomplished what he set out to accomplish.
The destruction of a High-Rank Black Ink Nest and the slaughter of a Territory Lord who could have become a Royal Lord was nothing more than his way of giving the Black Ink Clan a warning. He still had other things to do now.
[The Black Ink Clan would’ve come to a realisation by now, right? The sealed-up Territory Gate would surely give them a headache and keep them occupied for some time. Well, the bigger the headache, the better. It would make it even easier for me to carry out the rest of my plan.]
Several days later, Yang Kai rose to his feet as mighty as a Dragon and as fierce as a Tiger once more.
Even serious physical injuries did not mean much to him now as he could easily recover from them. He glanced in the direction of the No-Return Pass before turning around and heading deep into the Black Ink Battlefield. He had a Space Beacon in hand and was continually pouring his strength into it in search of a response.
One could say that the Black Ink Battlefield was made up of many different Theatres. Still, the expansiveness of the Black Ink Battlefield paled in comparison to the vastness of the Universe. It was like comparing a pond to an ocean.
For countless years, the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan clashed time and time again across the Black Ink Battlefield; however, following the Humans’ defeat, the once-frenetic battlefields became silent with none of the commotion of yore.
The Black Ink Clan claimed the No-Return Pass and made it their base as they fixed their eyes upon the 3,000 Worlds. Of course, they would send teams out to the Black Ink Battlefield to mine for resources, but they would not venture too far as there was plenty to harvest nearby.
The Theatres were situated in the part of the void much closer to the Late Ancient Era battlefield. At this moment, on a still and lifeless piece of land there, two silhouettes were hidden from sight with their auras suppressed. These two wizened-looking men were both Eighth-Order Masters, their aged visages coloured with looks of worry.
After a long bout of silence, the black-robed old man on the left spoke up, “It’s been nearly 700 years and we haven’t heard anything from Junior Brother Yang. Do you think something happened to him?”
Back then, they had agreed with Yang Kai that he would come and collect mined resources from them every 100 years; however, it had been nearly 700 years since the last exchange so it was unsurprising for them to be worried after not having seen Yang Kai for so long.
The other old man who was dressed in a hemp robe replied, “Out on the deathly battlefields, anything is possible.” Although he did not voice his agreement with his companion’s guess, he figured that Yang Kai must have gotten into some sort of unexpected situation; otherwise, he couldn’t avoid making the trip throughout all these years.
“What should we do then? Where can we go?”
They were deep inside the Black Ink Battlefield, and without Yang Kai to assist them, they would never be able to return to the 3,000 Worlds. They could not even get past the No-Return Pass.
“Junior Brother Zhao and the others sent messages asking about this too. They think we should use our fallback plan.”
“You mean, head over to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction?” The black-robed old man frowned.
The hemp-robed old man nodded and said, “Junior Brother Yang also said that it was our only means of escape as a last resort.”
“The Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction is quite some distance away. It would take at least two or three decades for our group to get there. We are Eighth-Order Masters so it would be fine for us, but considering how dangerous the journey would be, the little ones who are in the Fourth-Order and Fifth-Order might not be able to make it. We would end up losing a lot of them.”
“That’s indeed a problem, which is why Junior Brother Zhao didn’t suggest we leave for the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction right away. Although 700 years is not a short time, it’s not all that long for those in the High-Rank Open Heaven Realm. Perhaps Junior Brother Yang is being held up by something he encountered. It’s been so many years and the Black Ink Clan hasn’t detected us yet, so it’s still safe here for now.”
“So, shall we continue waiting?”
“That’s all we can do now.”
They fell silent for a while before the black-robed old man remarked, “I wonder what’s happening with the war in the 3,000 Worlds.”
“Hopefully, everything is going well.”
Silence befell them yet again.
They were all alone out here and could not get any news about the situation back in the 3,000 Worlds. It was incredibly hard to get by without knowing how the war was going.
That being said, they knew what their mission was. Someone had to do it, even though not many people were aware of the sacrifices they made.
Time continued trickling by. Several days later, the hemp-robed old man suddenly opened his eyes and gasped. He flipped his hand over and a round bead appeared. It was a Space Beacon.
When he focused on the Space Beacon, he found that there was something unusual happening. A mysterious energy was pulsing from it.
“That’s…” The hemp-robed old man looked pleasantly surprised.
Something like this had happened many times before. Each time the Space Beacon reacted this way, it meant that Yang Kai was on his way over. The old man kept this Space Beacon on him at all times as he waited and waited. Now, what he was waiting for was finally happening.
The black-robed old man was startled as well. He gazed at the Space Beacon with a hopeful, expectant expression.
The Space Beacon began reacting even more noticeably until at one point, the hemp-robed old man could sense that it had connected with something a great distance away.
In the very next moment, the Void in front of them rippled and a figure solidified in front of them.
[He’s here at last!] The two Eighth-Order Masters exhaled in relief and immediately transmitted the message out to everyone else.
“Junior Brother Yang! You’re finally… Huh?” The hemp-robed old man trailed off as he eyed Yang Kai in confusion. He had a look of complete shock as he exclaimed, “You’re… a Ninth-Order Master now?”
The black-robed old man beside him also noticed that something was different, but as Yang Kai did not exhibit his power clearly, the former could not be certain about it.
“Greetings, Senior Brothers. I’ve kept you waiting,” Yang Kai greeted them with a bow.
“You broke through to the Ninth Order?” The hemp-robed old man pressed again.
Yang Kai nodded, “You have good eyes, Senior Brother. I am indeed a Ninth-Order Master now!”
The two Eighth-Order Masters could not help but exchange looks. They felt both stunned and glad as they cheered, “Good! Very good!”
While they were busy with their conversation, the Space around them quivered as more figures began popping up. These were the other Eighth-Order Masters who were gathering here after receiving the message.
The moment they laid eyes on Yang Kai, the one they spent several centuries waiting for, they could not resist exhaling in relief. If Yang Kai did not show up soon, they would have to follow his instructions and head towards the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction to convene with the Suppressing Black Ink Army over there. However, if they chose to make that journey, it would be a long and perilous one, with many of them falling along the way. Thus, it was an extremely dangerous path of retreat that had to be avoided unless absolutely necessary.
But now that Yang Kai was here, they would not need to head over to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction.
When these older, more experienced Eighth-Order Masters heard the hemp-robed old man saying that Yang Kai was now a Ninth-Order Master, they were just as shocked and felt a tinge of suspicion that the old man had made a mistake. However, upon closer inspection, they realised that Yang Kai was indeed a Ninth-Order Master. Though they were no longer suspicious, they could not figure out how Yang Kai managed to do it.
Several millennia had passed since the Black Ink Clan’s invasion of the 3,000 Worlds. Before the Universe Furnace appeared, the Humans had been stuck guarding the dozen or so Great Territory battlefields. Apart from those Great Territories as well as High Heaven Territory and the New Great Territory, the rest of the other Great Territories largely fell into the Black Ink Clan’s hands.
Thus, the Humans had been facing a very difficult conundrum all this while.
It was the issue of resources. The fewer Great Territories they controlled, the fewer resources they had access to. A single New Great Territory was not enough to supply the needs of the entire Human Race.
During the great evacuation back then, all the Sects, including the Cave Heavens, and Paradises, brought along everything they could carry from their storehouses and treasuries. This was especially true of the Cave Heavens and Paradises who had hundreds of thousands of years of accumulated resources in their collections.
Nevertheless, in the thousands of years that passed since then, they had used up most of what they brought with them and their resources were nearly drained as well.
Furthermore, as the Human Race’s rising stars flourished and many new Open Heaven Realm Masters emerged in the Star Boundary and the Myriad Monsters World, the need for resources constantly grew.
In the past, the Human Race’s many Great Forces were spread throughout thousands of Great Territories across the 3,000 Worlds and were basically self-sufficient, but that could no longer be the case now.
As such, many years ago, the Humans started looking for ways to overcome this crisis.
It was a matter of resources, and the only options were to use them sparingly and find new sources.
It was easy enough to keep usage to a minimum. The Humans scrimped and saved wherever they could to avoid any needless usage of materials. They even stopped Squads from customizing their Warships hundreds of years ago.
However, the Humans had a hard time finding new sources. Earlier on, quite a lot of Hunters attempted to loot the Black Ink Clan teams who were moving resources around. They did manage to get what they wanted, but it was incredibly dangerous as well as things would end in disaster for them the moment a Master from the Black Ink Clan targeted them.
Many of the Black Ink Disciples among the Black Ink Clan now were such Hunters in the past.
Yang Kai had ‘negotiated’ with the Black Ink Clan at the No-Return Pass before and was richly rewarded for his efforts, but that was not a long-term solution.
Therefore, after much discussion with Mi Jing Lun back then, they created a group that was dedicated to mining resources. Several veteran Eighth-Order Masters were appointed as leaders and the whole group was snuck into the Black Ink Battlefield to carry out this mission.
The group consisted of tens of thousands of Human Masters, but their overall cultivation was fairly low, mainly in the Third, Fourth, and Fifth-Order. They could not contribute much on the battlefield, but they were able to gather resources which was a job that did not require much strength.
There were countless lifeless areas across the Black Ink Battlefield where an abundance of resources could be found, so it was a suitable place for them to exploit.
The Eighth-Order Masters who had been chosen were either the older ones with failing bodies or those with deep injuries to their foundations, leading to a noticeable decline in their strength. At the time, Ou Yang Lie had been one of them, but Yang Kai later sent him back as a messenger during the escaped Territory Lord emergency.
Yang Kai promised them that he would meet them once every century to retrieve the resources. Over a thousand years had passed and everything had gone smoothly until 700 years ago which was the last time he showed up, until today.
The many Eighth-Order Masters had been eagerly waiting this whole time. 700 years was not necessarily a long time, but they were all alone out here and had no clue what was happening in the 3,000 Worlds. That was the reason why they felt disproportionately on edge and often felt despairing.
Thus, when they received the message from the hemp-robed old man, the Eighth-Order Masters who had been scattered nearby immediately rushed over. They were pleasantly surprised to find that Yang Kai was now a Ninth-Order Master.
“Did you not show up all these years because you were in seclusion to make your breakthrough, Junior Brother?” The hemp-robed old man asked. His guess made sense.
“No, that’s not why,” Yang Kai shook his head, “It’s a long story.”
“Take your time! There’s no rush,” another Eighth-Order Master quickly said. He even took out a futon and passed it to Yang Kai.
They could not wait to be updated on everything that happened to the Human Race throughout the last 700 years. Now that Yang Kai had finally shown up again, they were going to make sure they gleaned all the information they could get.
Soon, everyone had taken a seat, and Yang Kai finally filled them in on all the changes that had occurred with the Human Race.
Their faces froze in shock when they heard that the Universe Furnace had surfaced and the stalemate between the Humans and the Black Ink Clan had been broken; however, they were thrilled to hear that four new Ninth-Order Masters had emerged from the Universe Furnace World.
Their reactions grew even more animated when they found out that Ou Yang Lie was one of those four.
“That old dog is now a Ninth-Order Master?” A white-haired Eighth-Order Master’s eyes nearly fell out of their sockets in shock as his face twitched violently.
“How did he get so damn lucky?” Another Eighth-Order Master commented enviously.
Initially, all of the Eighth-Order Masters who were assigned to this team were part of the older generation who had fought against the Black Ink Clan for thousands of years even before the invasion of the 3,000 Worlds and each of them had many fine accomplishments to their names. It was their long and storied histories that led to them having so many injuries that left a significant mark on them as well. They had no hope of becoming Ninth-Order Masters, and even if they went back to the battlefield, they could not wield their full strength anymore unless they put their lives on the line to do so.
They were perfectly willing to accept the arrangement and protect the group of miners as that was still contributing to the Human Race’s ultimate victory.
Yet, due to the incident back then, Yang Kai sent Ou Yang Lie back to the 3,000 Worlds to pass the news along, which ended up turning into an opportunity for the latter.
The old veterans here had complicated feelings about this as they felt as if they had missed out on a lot…
“Oh well, fortune favours fools. So be it that he’s now a Ninth-Order Master. It’s good news that we have one more Ninth-Order Master among us,” the hemp-robed old man cleared his throat and declared.
Everyone else nodded in agreement, “That’s true.”
Despite their envy, they knew that Ou Yang Lie’s ascension to the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm was a great boost to the Human Race’s strength. They were merely boggled by his incredible stroke of fortune. They had been assigned here together to contribute what little they could, and yet Ou Yang Lie was fortunate enough to make a huge leap in his cultivation.
“Seems to me that the Black Ink Clan suffered significant losses inside the Universe Furnace.”
Yang Kai nodded, “They lost a few Pseudo-Royal Lords and a Royal Lord too, but Mo Na Ye became a Royal Lord and narrowly avoided meeting his doom. Apart from the four Ninth-Order Masters who ascended inside the Universe Furnace, Senior Brother Wei Jun Yang and Senior Sister Luo Ting He also successfully broke through beforehand. Right now, Xiao Xiao and Wu Qing have been freed up as well, so they’re each leading an Army.”
Someone silently made the calculations, “Does that mean we have eight Ninth-Order Masters now?”
“We have nine!” Yang Kai turned to the person who spoke, “There’s one more that all of you aren’t familiar with. He’s in charge of guarding the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction and is the reincarnation of Martial Ancestor Shi.”
Yang Kai was referring to Wu Kuang, but Wu Kuang did not interact much with the Masters from Cave Heavens and Paradises. His name was not known to the masses and few even knew of his existence.
Wu Kuang had only been a Seventh-Order Master when Yang Kai brought him to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, but he was able to cultivate and reach the Ninth-Order Open Heaven Realm thanks to the Heaven Devouring Battle Law.
Still, everyone was greatly heartened by this news.
During the great war in the Barren Territory all those years ago, nearly all of the Ninth-Order Masters sacrificed their lives in the fight. Even the Heads of the Dragon and Phoenix Clans died in battle. Xiao Xiao and Wu Qing were the only Ninth-Order Masters left at the time, but they had to keep the Black Ink Giant Spirit God occupied and thus could not move from Wind Mist Territory.
Several millennia passed since then and the Humans finally had new Ninth-Order Masters among their ranks. There were quite a number of them too.
It was a ray of light that shone through after all their years of fighting and resistance efforts.
Following that, Yang Kai informed them about the Humans’ current situation out on the battlefields. Once they heard what was happening, the Eighth-Order Masters were itching to join the fighting and do their part in slaughtering the enemy.
Thankfully, they still recalled what their mission was and were able to stamp down their thirst for battle.
So much had changed with the situation for both Races in just 700 years. Though they did not expect any of it, they were not surprised by it either.
During the previous clashes between the Humans and the Black Ink Clan, both parties had consistently held back. It was partly due to the Black Ink Clan being wary of Yang Kai, but the primary reason was that the Humans and the Black Ink Clan were both building up their strength.
The appearance of the Universe Furnace disrupted the stalemate that had persisted for many millennia and kicked off the all-out war.
“Something happened and I was delayed all these years, forcing you all to wait for far too long.” Yang Kai only gave a brief explanation as to why he had not shown up for the past 700 years. He did not speak of all that had happened to him inside the Universe Furnace as there was no need for others to hear of these things.
The hemp-robed old man waved his hand and said, “It was only 700 years. There’s no harm in waiting. The others are out on the battlefield shedding their blood and making great sacrifices while we remain in safety here.”
Yang Kai’s expression grew serious, “I came here today for two reasons. The first is to collect the resources you’ve gathered all these years, and the second is to ask if any of you wish to return. If you do, I can take you back.”
Everyone brightened up at those words. They had been gathering resources across the Black Ink Battlefield for over 1,000 years now and had nothing much else to do. Considering the cultivation they had right now, they did not need to cultivate any further as it would not be useful anyway. Since they did not get into any fights with the enemy, their lives felt extremely mundane. They missed the old days of fighting on the battlefield.
Therefore, they livened up at Yang Kai’s words and many of them nodded fervently in agreement.
Nevertheless, the hemp-robed old man pondered in silence for a moment before asking, “Are we still stretched thin for resources at the moment?”
Yang Kai nodded, “It’s still a problem that’s hard to resolve. Although we’ve reclaimed many Great Territories, we can’t gather much from those places. The Black Ink Clan destroyed basically everything before they retreated.”
Many of the Great Territories the Humans reclaimed were nothing more than empty shells. It was clear that the Black Ink Clan would not allow the Humans to reclaim a Great Territory that was abundant in resources. Furthermore, after being under the control of the Black Ink Clan for all those years, all of the valuable areas had been almost completely stripped of resources as well.
Naturally, the Black Ink Clan took the resources with them when they evacuated. They were not going to leave them behind and allow their enemy to reap the benefits.
Everyone went quiet as their expressions fell.
“You don’t need to worry about resources,” Yang Kai said, “I will think of something.”
“What’s your idea?” the hemp-robed old man asked.
Yang Kai chuckled and said, “We lack resources, but the Black Ink Clan doesn’t. They’ve never had to fret over the lack of resources. Well, since they have more than enough, I’ll just borrow some from them.”
He had spoken in such a calm and relaxed manner that it was almost as if the Black Ink Clan would truly lend their resources to the Humans. Nevertheless, the Eighth-Order Masters knew better. Even though Yang Kai was a Ninth-Order Master, it would not be easy for him to target the Black Ink Clan, especially since they were not the same as they once were. Just as the Humans had grown stronger, the Black Ink Clan’s heritage had increased as well.
The hemp-robed old man remained silent in thought for a moment before saying, “All Humans are one, sharing glory and downfall together. We must gather resources, and even though we’re not doing so at a speedy rate, we’re still able to make some gains. Moreover, we’ve stayed well-hidden all these years and the Black Ink Clan has never discovered our presence. Let’s stay here and continue gathering the resources we need. As for the battlefield, let’s leave it to the younger generation. What do you think, everyone?”
This question of his was addressed to the other Eighth-Order Masters as he could not represent them all.
The Eighth-Order Masters were sensible enough to know what to choose. Though they longed to return to the battlefield and kill their share of the enemy, someone needed to stand guard where they were right now; thus, after hearing what the hemp-robed old man said, they swiftly nodded in agreement.
“I’m old now after spending all my life fighting the Black Ink Clan, I should enjoy some peace and quiet. Staying here isn’t a bad idea.”
“That’s right. We’ll leave all that violence and bloodshed to the young ones.”
“The next generation will be inheriting the mantle from us someday. We had to go through this ourselves back then, so we should give them a chance to train themselves too.”
“…”
Everyone voiced their support.
The hemp-robed old man smiled as he swept his eyes across them before turning back to Yang Kai, “Us old folks wish to stay here and enjoy the peace, so just leave us here. Although we can’t gather all that many resources, what we do collect will still be useful in some way.”
Yang Kai nodded, “Many thanks, everyone, but do prepare yourselves too. The situation won’t stay the same forever. There’ll come a day when the Humans will launch an all-out offensive, and when the time comes, perhaps we’ll need all of your help too.”
One of them guffawed right away, “We may be old, but we’re strong and mighty! It won’t be a problem for us to slaughter those Black Ink Clan punks when the time comes.”
After a brief chat, everyone started pulling out the resources they had gathered and passing everything over to Yang Kai. They managed to gather quite a lot, and as there was the danger of being detected by the Black Ink Clan, they did not store everything together. Instead, the resources were kept separately in over a dozen Space Rings. Thus, even if something bad happened, they would not lose everything that they gathered at once.
Fortunately, even after all these years, the Black Ink Clan had yet to discover their presence and had no idea that a team of Humans was secretly mining resources deep inside the Black Ink Battlefield. This was mainly due to the Humans being hidden so deep that they were nearly at the Late Ancient Era battlefield, and the Black Ink Clan never ventured this far from the No-Return Pass.
After collecting the Space Rings, Yang Kai bade them farewell and the Eighth-Order Masters watched as he left. Their many centuries of waiting had finally come to an end, and they found out that the Human Race’s situation was not as dire as they thought; therefore, they were all in a good mood.
Yang Kai took his leave of them and began his journey back.
It took him quite some time to find them, but it was far easier for him to head back now. With the help of some Space Beacons, he went back down the route he had used to come over, and in less than half a day, he arrived on the outskirts of the No-Return Pass.
He looked over and saw that the Territory Gate he sealed up earlier had already been opened, but he wasn’t surprised by that.
There were quite a number of powerful Black Ink Clansmen now, with two Royal Lords and several dozen Pseudo-Royal Lords at the No-Return Pass alone. Even if Yang Kai did seal up the Territory Gate, it would be easy for that many Masters to force it open again. It was just a matter of time.
[But, considering how shrewd Mo Na Ye is, he should have realised the severity of the situation, right?] It was a simple matter for Yang Kai to seal up the Territory Gate, but to the Black Ink Clan, it was a grave predicament.
This was especially true for the Black Ink Clan Army which was still out there fighting!
Yang Kai carefully sensed his surroundings and picked up on the many strong auras that were scattered across the No-Return Pass. The auras were not hidden in any way. It was almost as if they were bright lights shining in the middle of darkness. Now and then, Black Ink Clan teams would move around as they did their patrols. Everyone at the No-Return Pass was clearly on edge.
It could not be helped. Two months ago, Yang Kai had suddenly shown up at the No-Return Pass and transformed into a Divine Dragon to engage the Black Ink Clan Masters in a battle. Though they managed to give Yang Kai a fierce beating before forcing him to leave, they also suffered losses of their own.
Even if they ignored the injuries the Pseudo-Royal Lords received during the fight, there was also the loss of a High-Rank Black Ink Nest, which had been destroyed by Yang Kai, and the death of a Territory Lord who had the potential to become a Royal Lord.
Yang Kai did head towards the Black Ink Battlefield, but Mo Na Ye understood him well enough to know that he would surely be back.
As the Black Ink Clan had no way of ascertaining when Yang Kai would return, they could only be as vigilant as possible and keep the entire No-Return Pass on constant alert.
Although Yang Kai was just a single Human, his existence was enough to make all the Black Ink Clansmen at the No-Return Pass feel discomfited, vexed, and overwrought.
After a moment of observation, Yang Kai used Thunder Shadow’s Innate Divine Ability to conceal himself, hiding his physical form and aura; then, he headed straight towards the No-Return Pass.
At a certain moment, a Pseudo-Royal Lord positioned somewhere inside the No-Return Pass felt a flicker of danger. If this had been at any other time, he would not have paid much attention to such an insignificant sensation; however, Mo Na Ye had given clear orders beforehand, so the Pseudo-Royal Lord’s eyes flew open as he immediately made his presence even more imposing.
Mo Na Ye came over in a flash and glanced at the Pseudo-Royal Lord who grimly nodded.
Thus, Mo Na Ye began scanning all around with his Divine Sense, but his search came up empty.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai could not help but frown. He was still some distance away from them and had thought that he could use Thunder Shadow’s Innate Divine Ability to sneak over there and kill that Pseudo-Royal Lord, but he did not expect the latter to be on such high alert.
At the very least, he knew for certain that the Pseudo-Royal Lord did not discover his whereabouts. That being said, a being as strong as Pseudo-Royal Lord would still be able to instinctively sense danger. If Yang Kai wanted to attack the Pseudo-Royal Lord and prepared himself to do so, the latter would surely detect something.
However, Yang Kai was taken aback to find that the Pseudo-Royal Lord reacted this strongly to the barest hint of danger.
[He’s being far too cautious!] Yang Kai was speechless.
Alas, Yang Kai did not consider how the Black Ink Clan’s estimation of his strength had soared after what he did the last time he was here, as well as based on the information they had gathered.
Reactions as extreme as this had happened several times before this, but they had all been false alarms; still, the Black Ink Clan remained vigilant.
Mo Na Ye had no way of confirming whether or not Yang Kai was here, so he called out in a random direction, “I know you’re here, Yang Kai. Why are you hiding like a coward? Why don’t you show yourself?”
Yang Kai eyed Mo Na Ye who was not even facing his direction and could not resist rolling his eyes when he heard how confident the Royal Lord sounded.
[As if you know anything!]
There was no response, and Mo Na Ye did not make another attempt. He moved back to his previous spot and began scanning the area around him once more while the Pseudo-Royal Lord exhaled in relief.
Yang Kai could not resist scoffing from his hiding spot. It would be difficult for him to get anything done with the Black Ink Clan fiercely guarding against him like this!
Still, though the situation made it tough for Yang Kai to strike at the Black Ink Clan, the situation was even harder on them as they had to be on guard at all times in case he launched a surprise attack. The Pseudo-Royal Lords were under a lot of pressure, and even Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu were feeling extremely tense.
Right now, Yang Kai was the one who had the upper hand as all the possibility of danger stemmed from him. The Black Ink Clan could only react based on what he did.
Yang Kai stroked his chin before retreating and circling over to a different part of the No-Return Pass; then, he began sneaking over to one of the Pseudo-Royal Lords.
However, that Pseudo-Royal Lord soon sensed something and intensified his aura as well, and at the very next moment, Mo Yu who had been hidden somewhere popped up and scanned the area.
Yang Kai was incensed! [Why are all of them frightened by the slightest sound now?! Why are they making such a big fuss over just the tiniest hint of danger?! How am I supposed to make my move if they’re this wary?]
Alas, a Pseudo-Royal Lord was indeed powerful enough to have a keen sense for danger. Yang Kai wanted to attack them, but even if he used Thunder Shadow’s Divine Ability to hide his presence, he could not remove his opponent’s innate ability to sense crisis. It was a natural instinct that all Masters had.
Yang Kai frowned and moved his gaze towards a High-Rank Black Ink Nest.
[I can’t do anything to the Pseudo-Royal Lords when they’re this vigilant, but it shouldn’t be a problem if I target these Black Ink Nests, right?]
Black Ink Nests were inanimate objects and every single High-Rank Black Ink Nest was crucial to the foundation of the Black Ink Clan. The destruction of several would also be a huge loss for the Black Ink Clan. Furthermore, these ones at the No-Return Pass either housed Pseudo-Royal Lords in recovery or Territory Lords who were cultivating. There was a high chance that Yang Kai would get an unexpected bonus when he destroyed one of these High-Rank Black Ink Nests.
With that thought in mind, Yang Kai moved over to a High-Rank Black Ink Nest and slammed his fist into it.
All the Pseudo-Royal Lords jumped in shock when the ferocious force exploded out of nowhere. Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu also appeared at once and came charging over from different directions.
The next instant, the Pseudo-Royal Lords flew into action as well and they immediately began rushing over.
However, Yang Kai did not intend to engage them in a fight. A single punch from him was enough to make the humongous Black Ink Nest shatter into pieces, and a figure stumbled out looking rather dishevelled.
Yang Kai glanced at the figure and was pleased by what he saw. It was a Pseudo-Royal Lord who had been slumbering inside the Black Ink Nest to recuperate.
[An excellent find!]
Instead of killing the Territory Lords who had the potential to become Royal Lords, Yang Kai would much rather kill off some Pseudo-Royal Lords.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords were undeniably powerful and killing any one of them was a great boon. As for the Territory Lords, they merely had the possibility of becoming Royal Lords and it was uncertain whether or not they would succeed.
This Pseudo-Royal Lord had been abruptly awakened from his deep sleep and it was clear that he had not figured out what was happening yet. Thus, he was caught off guard and was swept into a large river that crashed down on him.
“Yang Kai!” Mo Na Ye’s teeth nearly cracked from how hard he clenched his jaw. A flurry of Secret Techniques burst out from him before he even arrived.
Mo Yu had done the same.
Yang Kai grabbed onto the Space-Time River and dashed off at once. Nevertheless, though he made a quick escape, he did stumble a little from the torrent of attacks from such a large group of Black Ink Clansmen.
Yang Kai was moving further and further away and the Black Ink Clan had no hope of catching up to him. Mo Na Ye swiftly came to a stop and the Pseudo-Royal Lords followed suit.
It was not as if they were reluctant to give chase, but they feared what could happen if they did. Had they given chase, Yang Kai would surely put up a fight. Space Secret Techniques were too unnerving to them as they allowed Yang Kai to move around elusively. Furthermore, Yang Kai also had a Secret Technique that allowed him to perfectly conceal himself, which made them feel even more distraught.
The Black Ink Clan Masters were seething with rage as they glared in the direction where Yang Kai had fled.
“Why didn’t you use the Grand Array?” Mo Na Ye was infuriated as he glared at a few of the Pseudo-Royal Lords beside him.
To defend themselves from Yang Kai’s sneak attack, Mo Na Ye had arranged for Grand Arrays to be set up all across the No-Return Pass. The moment Yang Kai showed up, they were to activate the Grand Arrays to seal off the Void.
One of the Pseudo-Royal Lords cowered under Mo Na Ye’s furious gaze and explained, “We did, but he didn’t use any Space Secret Techniques.”
Mo Na Ye’s expression froze.
The Grand Array which sealed off the Void could indeed remove Yang Kai’s ability to use Instantaneous Movement, but moments ago, he had simply dashed off into the distance and the Grand Array had no effect on that. Mo Na Ye had been so blinded by his fury that he forgot about this possibility.
All of a sudden, Mo Yu spoke up, “He stopped.”
Mo Na Ye looked over and saw that Yang Kai had indeed come to a stop just barely within his view. Even though Yang Kai did not say anything, it looked as if he was silently taunting them and daring them to come after him…
Mo Na Ye’s eyes dimmed and he was so infuriated that he nearly passed out.
The Space-Time River was churning with ferocious waves and it was clear that the Pseudo-Royal Lord stuck inside it was struggling to get out; however, considering the power Yang Kai had right now, the Pseudo-Royal Lord was not going to succeed when he was the only one Yang Kai had to suppress.
“Not coming after me, huh…” Yang Kai eyed the Black Ink Clan with flashing eyes. [They’re all so cautious. I guess they’re scared that I’ll turn around and attack them again.]
[In that case…]
A thought flashed through Yang Kai’s mind and his silhouette rippled as he dashed into the Space-Time River. All at once, the already choppy water of the Space-Time River began swirling even more fiercely.
Mo Na Ye’s expression changed as he viewed this from a distance. He nearly rushed over, but before he could do anything, the churning river quietened down as Yang Kai reappeared.
He was holding onto the Pseudo-Royal Lord, who was barely breathing and whose vitality was weak.
The Pseudo-Royal had returned to the No-Return Pass to recuperate inside the Black Ink Nest after being heavily injured during a fight with the Eighth-Order Masters out on the battlefield.
He had not fully recovered yet and was not at the peak of his strength; furthermore, he had been trapped inside the Space-Time River, so it took Yang Kai no effort to subdue him.
With the Pseudo-Royal Lord in hand, Yang Kai gazed coldly at the powerful Masters from the Black Ink Clan who stood in a group some distance away from him and his grip began tightening.
The Pseudo-Royal Lord sensed what was happening and tried to struggle with the last of his strength, but it was to no avail. He could only look up at Mo Na Ye and the others as he cried out, “Save…”
Before he could finish, he burst into a cloud of blood as Black Ink Strength exploded and turned into a huge Black Ink Cloud.
Yang Kai scoffed and flicked his hand a few times.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords opposite him were beside themselves with rage while Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu were livid as well. They could not stay calm in the face of Yang Kai’s repeated taunts, but they could not do anything about it either.
The previous fight proved just how powerful Yang Kai was. Even with the combined strength of two Royal Lords and several dozen Pseudo-Royal Lords, they failed to kill him and could only chase him off. Even if they started a fight now, it was unlikely that they would benefit from it.
It could be said that Yang Kai, who was now a Ninth-Order Master and a Divine Dragon at the same time, was entirely capable of freely moving about among the Black Ink Clan.
Yang Kai did not leave right away after killing the Pseudo-Royal Lord though. Instead, he eyed Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu with interest and asked, “Between you two, who’s in charge now?”
Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu stayed silent. Their gazes were dark and they appeared to be uninterested in entertaining Yang Kai.
Yang Kai snorted, “The feud between the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan runs deeper than the ocean of blood that has been spilt. The relationship between us is absolutely irreconcilable and we will forever be at each other’s throats trying to kill each other. Have the Humans not lost countless lives to your Black Ink Clan as well? All I did was kill a Pseudo-Royal Lord, so why are you reacting in this manner? What’s wrong? Are you just sore losers?”
[Just one!? Eight Pseudo-Royal Lords died at your hands when you showed up at E-5 Territory!] The thought of this made Mo Na Ye’s blood boil, [You would’ve killed the rest of them there if it had not been for the fact that they fled the moment they realised the situation didn’t look good for them.]
Mo Na Ye took a deep breath to quell his anger before gritting his teeth and spitting out, “What do you want? Just spit it out.”
At last, he deduced from Yang Kai’s game of cat and mouse that the latter must want something from them, so instead of wasting time staring each other down, Mo Na Ye figured it was better to just address things head-on.
Yang Kai looked at him with a startled expression, “Are you the one in control of the Black Ink Clan now? Did you manage to overthrow Mo Yu’s rule?”
He turned to Mo Yu, “You’re the Senior Royal Lord, you know? Even if Mo Na Ye has become a Royal Lord, he’s still your Junior. How can you let someone younger climb up on your head and order you around? That’s not the way things should be.”
Mo Yu was unphased as Yang Kai’s words meant nothing to him.
Meanwhile, Mo Na Ye’s expression was cold as he growled, “Don’t bother trying to instigate conflict. We don’t scheme and stab each other in the back the way you Humans do!”
Yang Kai pursed his lips as he was merely giving it a try. It would be great if he successfully drove a wedge between the two Royal Lords, but either way, he would not be losing anything by trying.
Nevertheless, it did not seem to be effective.
Yang Kai shrugged and said, “Since you’re in charge, it’s all good to me. We’re well-acquainted with each other and have never done each other wrong. I came here today to do business with the Black Ink Clan.”
Mo Na Ye’s brow twitched. Just the word ‘business’ was enough to give him a headache as he recalled what it had been like when Yang Kai ripped him off last time.
Thus, when he heard what Yang Kai said, he had a bad feeling and sorely wished he could sew Yang Kai’s mouth shut…
He did not respond and Yang Kai did not care as he continued, “I want to retrieve something from the No-Return Pass, so I hope you all know what’s good for you and cooperate with me.”
Mo Na Ye’s eyelids twitched even harder, “What is it?”
Yang Kai pointed with his finger.
Mo Na Ye turned to see what he was pointing at and saw a few towering Black Ink Nests. These were all Mid-Rank Black Ink Nests save for one High-Rank Black Ink Nest.
“A Black Ink Nest?” Mo Na Ye queried in confusion.
He could not figure it out. Why would Yang Kai want a Black Ink Nest?
Black Ink Nests were the foundation of the Black Ink Clan, but they were fairly useless to the Humans. Back then, the Humans did grab a few Black Ink Nests to study, and during the first crusade, they also used the Black Ink Nests’ communicative functions to make arrangements for their separated Armies.
However, ever since then, the Humans stopped having any ideas about the Black Ink Nests.
“You misunderstand. Why would I want a Black Ink Nest?” Yang Kai pointed once more, “I want what’s beneath those Black Ink Nests.”
Mo Na Ye was startled but he soon realised what Yang Kai meant and could not resist snorting, “You’re quite greedy, aren’t you?!”
The only thing beneath the Black Ink Nests was a Great Pass.
Back then, when the Human Race’s Crusade Force had been defeated outside the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction, they had been forced to retreat to the No-Return Pass; however, during that time, some of the Great Passes remained behind to delay the enemy. They suffered heavy casualties and most of the Great Passes were also either badly damaged or destroyed.
In the end, only some 70 to 80 Great Passes gathered back at the No-Return Pass. Following that, several more had been destroyed when the Black Ink Clan invaded the No-Return Pass. The only Great Passes remaining here at the No-Return Pass numbered approximately half of what the Humans had at their peak, and most were heavily damaged.
The majestic Great Passes were legacies from the Human Race’s Ancestors. It was the heritage that was collected and passed down from generation to generation. These Great Passes greatly contributed to the Humans’ ability to resist the Black Ink Clan across the many Theatres of the Black Ink Battlefield.
Every Great Pass was a massive Mobile Palace Artifact that could be used for both offence and defence.
The Suppressing Black Ink Fortress had been created to mimic these Great Passes, but it was far smaller in comparison. It was like comparing a child to an adult.
However, due to the overwhelmingly large size of these Great Passes, the Ninth-Order Old Ancestors had no way of taking them with them when they retreated; thus, when the Humans lost the No-Return Pass, the Great Passes had been left behind.
Even though the Black Ink Clan took over the No-Return Pass, they could not use these Great Passes, so they simply used them as platforms to plant their Black Ink Nests.
So many years had passed since then and the Humans had never considered reclaiming these Great Passes as they could not do so. Mo Na Ye never expected Yang Kai to make this request now.
The Black Ink Clan could not do anything with these Great Passes because the Humans had taken all the Cores with them when they evacuated. Even the arrays and artifacts built into the Great Passes had been destroyed. They left nothing but empty shells for the Black Ink Clan.
Thus, Mo Na Ye was puzzled by Yang Kai’s request for a Great Pass. It was no big deal to give one to Yang Kai, but since they were enemies, he was not going to agree to it.
Mo Na Ye was about to reject the request when he heard Yang Kai adding airily, “I only wish to take a Great Pass. I’ll let you move your Black Ink Nests away first. All you have to do is agree to my request, but if you refuse… Well, I have nothing much to do anyway. I guess I’ll just drop by for a visit every now and then.”
Mo Na Ye had to choke down what he was about to say. No words could describe the bitter taste in his mouth right now.
If Yang Kai had made this request two months ago when he first showed up, there was no way Mo Na Ye would have agreed; however, the fight two months ago allowed the Black Ink Clan to witness Yang Kai’s might. Furthermore, his sneak attack earlier resulted in the loss of a High-Rank Black Ink Nest and a Pseudo-Royal Lord.
How could they afford to bear such losses if this situation happened a few more times? The Pseudo-Royal Lords did have the ability to sense danger approaching, but the Black Ink Nests were inanimate objects. If Yang Kai focused on attacking the Black Ink Nests, then no matter how many High-Rank Black Ink Nests they had at the No-Return Pass, the number would eventually drop to zero someday. Yang Kai had proven himself capable of doing such a thing.
Therefore, after taking everything into account, Mo Na Ye realised he had no way of rejecting the request.
He could not resist glancing at Mo Yu. Although Mo Yu trusted him and allowed him to be in charge of all military matters, he could not decide such a thing by himself so he had to discuss it with Mo Yu first.
The two Royal Lords communicated with their Divine Sense and Yang Kai did not rush them.
Moments later, Mo Na Ye gritted his teeth and declared, “We can give you the Great Pass, but I want something from you as well.”
Yang Kai chuckled, “Well, this is a business transaction. As always, the price starts off sky-high before coming back down to close the deal. Go ahead and say what you want.”
“Once we give you the Great Pass, you are not to come back to the No-Return Pass ever again,” Mo Na Ye declared.
“Do you want to go back to sleep and carry on with your dreams?” Yang Kai eyed Mo Na Ye as if he were staring at a fool.
Mo Na Ye shrugged, “You’re the one who said the asking price should start off high. Who knows? Maybe you might’ve agreed to it.”
Yang Kai’s mood soured, “Do I look like a fool to you?”
“1,000 years then! Don’t come back to the No-Return Pass for 1,000 years!”
The veins along Yang Kai’s forehead started to pulse, “I said the price starts off high, but I didn’t say it should be ridiculous!”
“I learned from you…” Mo Na Ye fired back mockingly.
Yang Kai glared at him before waving his hand, “10 years. I’ll stay away from the No-Return Pass for 10 years!”
“900 years!” Mo Na Ye started bargaining.
“I think you have misunderstood the situation you’re currently in,” Yang Kai remarked incredulously, “It’s not a must for me to retrieve something today. I can always come back to the No-Return Pass whenever I want. Staying away for a decade is the most sincerity I can offer, so don’t push your luck!”
10 years seemed like a long time to a normal Human without any cultivation, but for top Masters, especially those whose cultivation had reached that of Mo Na Ye and Yang Kai, it was nothing more than a flick of the hand.
Thus, it was only natural that Mo Na Ye was dissatisfied with Yang Kai’s proposal and immediately began to haggle as if he were arguing with a merchant at the market.
Nevertheless, Yang Kai was the one with all the leverage, and he insisted on 10 years. Mo Na Ye was so frustrated that he fumed, “Since you want to do business, shouldn’t you at least show some sincerity? I don’t detect even the tiniest bit of sincerity from your stance at all. Sure, you may be able to throw your weight around right now, but you won’t always get so lucky. Don’t the Humans have a saying, Yang Kai? He who often walks by the river can’t avoid getting his shoes wet! You’re not invincible; moreover, we will be on guard from now on, so how often will you get to succeed in the future?”
Mo Na Ye hit the nail on the head. After Yang Kai’s latest stunt, the No-Return Pass was bound to impose even tighter security measures. Even though Yang Kai was banking on his superior strength, he would still get himself into a sticky situation if he was unlucky.
That was why Yang Kai was willing to strike a deal with the Black Ink Clan. He would not have bothered wasting his breath with them if he was certain he could destroy all of the High-Rank Black Ink Nests. If he had such confidence, he would have focused on doing just that no matter how long it took him.
The High-Rank Black Ink Nests were the very foundation of the Black Ink Clan, so if they were all destroyed, the Black Ink Clan would no longer have the means to replenish their Army. They would not be getting any new Royal Lords either.
With the heritage that the Black Ink Clan had right now, if they could not increase their numbers and create more Royal Lords, the Humans would simply need to keep fighting at a steady pace and sooner or later they would be able to wipe out the enemy.
Yang Kai could not resist clicking his tongue; alas, he could not pull one over Mo Na Ye. After mulling it over briefly, he declared, “Fine. 30 years. I won’t come back to the No-Return Pass for 30 years. This is my final offer. If you don’t agree, then the deal’s off.”
Mo Na Ye opened his mouth to speak, but Yang Kai gave him a hard look and swiftly added, “Think carefully before you speak. If you so much as utter the word ‘no’, I will turn around and leave at once!”
Mo Na Ye’s mouth remained open, but he could not say anything…
He glared at Yang Kai before communicating with Mo Yu with his Divine Sense.
Yang Kai calmly waited for their decision, but his eyes swept over all the Pseudo-Royal Lords, his sinister gaze making them tremble in fear…
A moment later, Mo Na Ye spoke up, “It’s a deal. You can take one Great Pass in exchange for staying away from the No-Return Pass for 30 years. I hope you’ll honour your end of the deal.”
Yang Kai grinned, “You can rest assured that I’ll do just that. We’ve dealt with each other many times, but have I ever broken my word?”
Mo Na Ye did not respond.
It was true that Yang Kai had never broken his promise before, but the situation at this point was a far cry from what it had been back then. In the past, though they were on opposing sides, both Races were busy building up their strength and thus acted with restraint. That was the reason why Yang Kai did not do anything reckless back then; however, the situation was different now. A full-scale war had broken out between the two sides and they were constantly at each other’s throats. In all honesty, Mo Na Ye had little faith in Yang Kai’s likelihood of keeping his promise. Even if Yang Kai had no intention of following through though, the Black Ink Clan could not do anything about it.
Mo Na Ye agreed to the deal for two reasons. The first was that he could not do anything anyway, but secondly, it was also his way of sounding out Yang Kai.
“The Humans left a total of 49 Great Passes here, which one do you want?” Mo Na Ye asked.
“I’ll take a look first,” Yang Kai replied. Naturally, he wanted to take the one that was the least damaged; otherwise, even if he did retrieve one, the Humans would have to use a hefty amount of their resources to repair it, and resources were exactly what they currently had the least of.
Thus, Yang Kai flew towards the No-Return Pass while the Black Ink Clan instinctually backed away.
Once Yang Kai got close to the No-Return Pass, he stopped and carefully studied the Great Passes.
Although he had made trips to the No-Return Pass numerous times, he was always busy trying to cause damage to the Black Ink Clan and had not paid much attention to the condition of the Great Passes that had been left here. Now that he was scrutinising them, he could sense just how intense the war back then had been.
During the great battle at the No-Return Pass, Yang Kai was still inside the Great Sea Celestial Phenomenon, and by the time he managed to escape and return to the fight, the Humans had lost the No-Return Pass and retreated to the Barren Territory.
Therefore, he had not been a part of that battle and only knew that the Humans suffered terrible casualties, including the deaths of over a dozen Ninth-Order Old Ancestors.
The Black Ink Clan did not come out unscathed either of course. One of the Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods had been heavily wounded by the Humans during the Black Ink Clan’s siege of the No-Return Pass. It was that Black Ink Giant Spirit God that was killed in the Barren Territory with Ah Er’s assistance. If it had not been for that, there would not be just two Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods remaining.
None of the many Great Passes left here at the No-Return Pass was in perfect condition. All of them were littered with traces from that battle, including blood stains from both Races.
In the end, Yang Kai’s eyes fell on one of the Great Passes and he pointed at it, “I’ll take that one.”
He could vaguely see two characters on one of the walls, but it was hard to decipher them, possibly due to the passage of time as well as the damage sustained during the battle. However, Yang Kai could just barely make out their meaning.
[That should be Pure Yang Pass!]
The Old Ancestor of Pure Yang Cave Heaven was the one who was in charge of Pure Yang Pass, and among all of the Old Ancestors back then, he was one of the oldest and most powerful.
Yang Kai had long admired the Old Ancestor, but he never got the chance to meet the latter. He heard it was that very Old Ancestor who rallied all the others and led the final charge during the waning moments of the Barren Territory War where they took on the Black Ink Giant Spirit God and all the Royal Lords. He and the other Old Ancestors had chosen to sacrifice their lives for the future of the Human Race.
After being reminded of the valiant Old Ancestor, Yang Kai became emotional and levelled a cold glare at Mo Na Ye, “Move your Black Ink Nests away!”
There were four Black Ink Nests on Pure Yang Pass. One was a High-Rank Black Ink Nest while the other three were Mid-Rank Black Ink Nests. Quite a number of Black Ink Clansmen were also stationed there.
It had been agreed upon earlier that Yang Kai would allow the Black Ink Clan to move their Black Ink Nests away beforehand. Even though a murderous feeling rose in his heart, he did not want to get into a conflict with Mo Na Ye right now.
Mo Na Ye flicked his hand and over a dozen Territory Lords swiftly came over in a group. They kept a wary eye on Yang Kai as they began moving their Black Ink Nests.
During this process, Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu kept their auras locked on Yang Kai. It was clear they were heavily guarding against him.
Fortunately, Yang Kai did not do anything. Once all the Black Ink Nests had been moved and the Black Ink Clansmen left, Yang Kai moved over to Pure Yang Pass in a flash.
“Can he take it with him?” Mo Yu secretly asked Mo Na Ye.
Mo Na Ye shook his head, “I don’t know, but since he proposed this deal, it’s obvious that he’s confident about it.”
Yang Kai would not have made such a proposition if he did not feel confident.
“What a frightening enemy,” Mo Yu remarked with a complicated expression.
These Great Passes had been left behind at the No-Return Pass because they were too massive. Even the Old Ancestors back then could not easily store them inside their Small Universes.
The Pure Yang Old Ancestor, who was one of the mightiest Ninth-Order Masters, could probably accomplish this, but at the time, the Humans had to make a hasty retreat from the No-Return Pass as the situation had been fairly dire for them, and he did not have the time to do something like that. Furthermore, if he did move Pure Yang Pass into his Small Universe, it would have had a huge effect on his combat strength. Under those circumstances, he had to ensure he was at his strongest and could not jeopardise the situation just for the sake of a Great Pass.
[If Yang Kai manages to store a Great Pass inside his Small Universe, doesn’t that mean his heritage is even stronger than the previous generation’s top Ninth-Order Masters?]
[He hasn’t even been a Ninth-Order Master for long! He still has the potential to grow stronger!] Mo Yu was secretly horrified at the thought of Yang Kai’s terrifying talent and potential.
“Stick to the plan,” Mo Na Ye secretly communicated to everyone.
He had no choice but to compromise and agree to let Yang Kai retrieve a Great Pass, but at the same time, he wanted to use this chance to see Yang Kai’s limits. After all these years of battling the Humans, the Black Ink Clan was familiar enough with the mysteries of the Open Heaven Realm Master’s Small Universe.
Even if Yang Kai had the ability to take such an enormous Great Pass with him, it would surely affect his strength. If Yang Kai so much as showed signs of weakness, the Black Ink Clan would not hesitate to gang up on him and try to get rid of him once and for all!
The deal would not have been struck so easily if this had not been what the Black Ink Clan was hoping for.
The Black Ink Clan were eyeing Yang Kai with the eyes of hunters when he turned abruptly, looked up, and grinned at them. After all these years of dealing with Mo Na Ye, it was only natural that he figured out what this Royal Lord was up to.
Yang Kai chuckled to himself, [If that’s what Mo Na Ye is hoping for, then he’s going to be sorely disappointed.]
As that thought flickered in his head, he summoned the Space-Time River. This move startled the Black Ink Clan. They had assumed that Yang Kai would have to use the strength of his Small Universe to retrieve Pure Yang Pass; after all, something as massive as a Great Pass could only be stored inside a Ninth-Order Master’s Small Universe if they wanted to move it on their own.
[Why did he summon this Dao Strength River?]
Mo Na Ye’s expression darkened as he realized he had been mistaken…
The sound of flowing water rang in their ears as the Space-Time River slowly unfurled, and under Yang Kai’s control, it looped around Pure Yang Pass until the entire Great Pass was completely engulfed by it.
Inside the river, Space-Time Dao Strength pulsed and the water suddenly started churning as a highly concentrated amount of the Space Dao Strength was released and the space covered by the river began to ripple.
Yang Kai made a grabbing motion at the Space-Time River and carelessly clutched it before turning to Mo Na Ye, “If you don’t make a move now, it’s going to be too late.”
Mo Na Ye stared right back at him with a neutral expression, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Yang Kai snorted and paid him no mind as he began channelling his strength through his hand.
Space quivered as cracks began to appear.
All at once, the Void where Pure Yang Pass was looked as if it was a block of tofu that had been sliced out by something sharp. The area that was enveloped by the Space-Time River broke off from the rest of the surrounding Space.
All Black Ink Clansmen were stunned while disbelief flashed in the eyes of the two Royal Lords. They were powerful and experienced Masters, but even to them, the power Yang Kai exhibited was far too unimaginable.
The Space-Time River began surging even more. It seemed as if the Space Dao Strength was about to explode and send thunderous waves crashing out of the great river.
Yang Kai slowly curled his fist, and as he did that, the piece of the Void that had been cut out began shrinking as if something was squeezing it.
Each time the water of the Space-Time River made a full circle, the chunk of Void grew a little smaller. From the looks of it, the entire piece of Space was going to be compressed by the pressure from the great river.
Yang Kai’s mysterious power was far beyond the realm of what the Black Ink Clan thought possible.
A quarter-hour later, the dust cleared. Yang Kai raised his hand and a ball the size of his fist shot into it.
In the distance, those from the Black Ink Clan were looking on with widened eyes and gaping mouths.
Mo Na Ye sighed to himself, [I was mistaken!] He assumed that Yang Kai would use his Small Universe to retrieve Pure Yang Pass and never thought the latter would exhibit such an ability instead.
Meanwhile, Yang Kai fiddled with the Space-Time River ball in his hand as he secretly smirked.
He was able to turn a Universe World into a World Bead, so how difficult would it be to do the same to Pure Yang Pass?
Of course, there was a difference between refining a Universe World into a World Bead and what he just did. He had been able to refine those Universe Worlds because their World Principles had not perished yet. In other words, the Universe Worlds were still alive, so in a sense they were cooperating with him which allowed him to refine each one of them before leaving them with the World Tree. That was also how he managed to build a strange connection with the World Tree and use the power of the Old Tree to traverse the Void.
However, Pure Yang Pass was completely inanimate and could not be communicated with in any way, so Yang Kai could not refine it in the same way. He could only wrap the Space-Time River around Pure Yang Pass and slice away the local Space where it was before using the power of his Space-Time River to compress everything.
With his present command over the Dao of Space, it was well within his means to do such a thing; furthermore, after encountering those tiny Celestial Phenomena inside the Universe Furnace’s Infinite River, he had gained much inspiration from them.
It could be said that his Space-Time River was the most crucial part of this whole plan. Without the Space-Time River, Yang Kai would have a hard time cutting out such a huge piece of the Void.
Yang Kai played with the Space-Time River ball in his hand before looking over at Mo Na Ye, “Why don’t I take another Great Pass in exchange for staying away from the No-Return Pass for 60 years?”
“Get lost!” Mo Na Ye was incensed as he had abruptly realised that the more powerful Yang Kai was, the more outrageous he became. [How dare he make such a shameless request?!]
The Humans’ Great Passes were extremely lethal weapons of war. It was bad enough to let Yang Kai take one with him, so why would they let him take two?
What’s more, there was barely a difference between 30 years and 60 years.
“Stingy!” Yang Kai pursed his lips, but he had only made this remark off-handedly as he knew for certain that the Black Ink Clan would not agree to it. Even if they did, he would not be able to do it anyway. He only had one Space-Time River and could not pull out another one.
“You’ve gotten what you wanted, so hurry up and leave,” Mo Na Ye could not resist urging. In a single trip to the No-Return Pass, Yang Kai managed to cause the loss of a Pseudo-Royal Lord and a High-Rank Black Ink Nest. He even took the Pure Yang Pass with him. All in all, the Black Ink Clan lost quite a fair bit.
Fortunately, if Yang Kai kept his word, they would not have to see him for another 30 years, and in that time, they could hopefully find a way to deal with such situations; otherwise, if Yang Kai returned once the 30 years were up, they would still be unable to do anything about him.
“There’s no rush,” Yang Kai smiled faintly as he eyed Mo Na Ye and said, “I’d like to discuss a second business proposal with you.”
Mo Na Ye’s head was throbbing by now and immediately raised his hand and said, “No thanks. You said it yourself, the Human Race and the Black Ink Clan are irreconcilable enemies and the bloodshed between us is enough to fill even the deepest oceans. There’s nothing we need to discuss. Leave at once with what you’ve taken!”
Nothing good came out of anything that was related to Yang Kai. Mo Na Ye was on his guard and did not want to waste any more time on this Human.
He did not expect Yang Kai to ignore what he said entirely and carry on speaking anyway, “The battlefields between both sides are similar to what it was back then. Right now, 12 Great Territories are being fought over with quite a number of Pseudo-Royal Lords standing guard at each one, along with massive Armies. Even if you don’t care about the lives of those in your Army, you’d still have to care about the lives of the Pseudo-Royal Lords, right?”
Mo Na Ye’s heart skipped a beat and his expression darkened, “What do you mean by that?”
Yang Kai chuckled and took a step forward. With the use of Space Principles, he reappeared in front of the Territory Gate and looked down upon the Black Ink Clan Masters beneath him as he taunted, “Don’t tell me you have no idea what I meant by that. Do you insist on forcing me to spell it out for you?”
Mo Yu’s expression was as dark as night and Mo Na Ye’s was not any better, but the latter stubbornly refuted, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Yang Kai scoffed, “Seems to me you won’t admit it until I force your hand!” Then, he continued, “Why don’t I make a guess? When I left the No-Return Pass and all of you began prying open the Territory Gate, you must’ve gotten the word out at once for all the Pseudo-Royal Lords to retreat from the battlefields, right? Oh, wait. It won’t just be them. The Territory Lords and many of the Feudal Lords too, right? After all, you went through all that effort building them up, so it won’t be good if too many died. Based on the timing, the ones nearest to the No-Return Pass should arrive at the Barren Territory soon. Maybe I should head over there and greet them.”
Mo Na Ye’s eyes were flaming as murderous intent swelled up. He clenched his jaw and spat out, “You’ve known all along!”
Initially, he hoped that Yang Kai would not be able to figure this out, but the moment Yang Kai said it aloud, he knew he had been far too hopeful.
After all, with how shrewd Yang Kai was; it was impossible for him to not have thought of this possibility. Nevertheless, the fact that he did not show any signs of having thought about it earlier gave the Black Ink Clan a trace of hope.
That being said, the moment Yang Kai brought it up, Mo Na Ye knew that the situation was heading down the worst possible path for them.
Mo Na Ye instantly realised the severity of the situation when Yang Kai left the No-Return Pass and headed for the depths of the Black Ink Battlefield. The fact that Yang Kai could cause even more trouble at the No-Return Pass now was not the most serious issue. Although the Black Ink Clan could not be pleased by the way he messed around at the No-Return Pass, destroyed a Black Ink Nest, and killed a recovering Pseudo-Royal Lord, it did not have much of an effect on the fights out on the various battlefields.
On the contrary, Yang Kai’s ability to seal up the Territory Gate whenever he pleased was his biggest trump card!
The No-Return Pass was the foundation of the Black Ink Clan. They had two Royal Lords here and all of their High-Rank Black Ink Nests as well. Around 80% of the reinforcements sent to the battlefield came from the No-Return Pass. Even the injured Pseudo-Royal Lords had to return to the No-Return Pass to heal.
Therefore, the Territory Gate between the No-Return Pass and the Barren Territory was critical to their war effort!
If it was sealed up, the Black Ink Clan would not be able to send reinforcements to the various battlefields, and the Pseudo-Royal Lords who were on their way back could not return either.
Yang Kai could even seal up the Territory Gates across the various battlefields to keep all of the Black Ink Clan Armies caged up, then slowly eliminate them!
Considering how powerful he was now, no one would be able to challenge him out on the battlefields as there was not a single true Royal Lord overseeing them.
Yang Kai had also sealed up the Territory Gate at the No-Return Pass in the past, but at the time, he was only an Eighth-Order Open Heaven Realm Master. Even though he managed to seal up the Territory Gate, he did not have the power to kill off Royal Lords and Pseudo-Royal Lords and he would not be able to accomplish much if he relied solely on his Soul Rending Thorns.
However, the situation was different now. Yang Kai was a Ninth-Order Master and a Divine Dragon as well. The fight two months ago had allowed Mo Na Ye to realise just how powerful Yang Kai had truly become.
A Human as strong as Yang Kai with the tricky ability to seal Territory Gates to boot was an enemy that the Black Ink Clan could not go up against. His existence threatened to turn the tides on the Black Ink Clan despite the effort they had put in all these years to get things to where they were now.
Yang Kai using his ability to seal up the Territory Gate was the foreshadowing sign of the Black Ink Clan’s future possibility of devastating losses out on the battlefields.
Thus, while they were busy forcing open the Territory Gate, Mo Na Ye made sure the Black Ink Clan avoided suffering such heavy casualties by getting the word out as well. He instructed all of the Pseudo-Royal Lords out on the battlefields to retreat and return to the No-Return Pass as quickly as they could.
Doing this was the equivalent of dooming the rest of the Black Ink Clan Army. Though the Pseudo-Royal Lords could flee, the Armies could not. Mo Na Ye could predict that the Humans would certainly be able to massacre the Black Ink Clan Soldiers that remained on the battlefields.
Despite making all of the necessary arrangements beforehand, Mo Na Ye still had a hard time dealing with the fact that Yang Kai saw right through everything.
The losses the Black Ink Clan suffered this time around were irrefutably the worst since the Barren Territory War, but it was an unavoidable situation. Their goal was to invade the 3,000 Worlds, so naturally they fought deep within the 3,000 Worlds.
“Since you’ve already thought of this, why haven’t you done anything yet?” Now that things had come to this, Mo Na Ye was surprisingly able to keep a cool head.
“What are you referring to?” Yang Kai cocked his eyebrows.
“After claiming E-5 Territory, you could’ve easily helped out on the next battlefield. You could’ve also sealed up the Territory Gates to ensure the Human Race’s victory!”
This was something Mo Na Ye could not figure out. Yang Kai had made his move at E-5 Territory and helped the Red Flame Army slaughter a total of eight Pseudo-Royal Lords, but after having done that, he ran straight over to the No-Return Pass instead of lingering on the battlefield. Mo Na Ye believed that Yang Kai could have simply continued his efforts in the next Great Territory. The Black Ink Clan there would surely be defeated and at least a few of the Pseudo-Royal Lords would have died in the process.
Yang Kai chuckled and said, “Even though I could’ve taken over another battlefield by doing so, when word got back to you, you would’ve made the same arrangements as now. That means I’ll only get to kill a few more Pseudo-Royal Lords. There’s not much point in that.”
Mo Na Ye mulled it over and nodded lightly. As it was, the moment he received the report from E-5 Territory, he immediately thought about withdrawing all of the Pseudo-Royal Lords as it would be dangerous for them if Yang Kai began eyeing them too. There was no telling where Yang Kai would head off to next, so it had to be a full retreat.
However, the subsequent dispatches made it clear that Yang Kai did not head to any other battlefield and instead headed straight for the No-Return Pass, which was why Mo Na Ye did not immediately give the order to retreat.
That all changed when Yang Kai left the No-Return Pass. As Mo Na Ye surveyed the sealed-up Territory Gate, he finally realised how grave the situation was.
All of a sudden, Yang Kai’s expression hardened as he said, “The situation across the 3,000 Worlds is far too messy right now. All of the Armies are separated and your Black Ink Clan has established forward outposts throughout the various Great Territories. Don’t you think it’s better if we make the situation simpler?”
Mo Na Ye came to an understanding, “So, that’s why you’ve chosen to do this!”
Yang Kai nodded, “Soon, the Humans will reclaim the 3,000 Worlds, and the Black Ink Clan will have to all gather together at the No-Return Pass. The Humans won’t need to disperse their Armies to deal with you, they will simply have to keep their eye on the No-Return Pass.” As for the Pseudo-Royal Lords whose lives were threatened by Yang Kai, sooner or later, they would still die.
Mo Na Ye could not help but feel impressed, “That is indeed the best possible situation for the Humans.” Then, he followed up with a sigh, “The Humans are blessed to have you, Yang Kai!”
Yang Kai smirked, “Don’t think I’ll go easy on you just because you are flattering me.”
Mo Na Ye shook his head and asked with a forlorn expression, “Is this the second business proposal you talked about earlier?”
As soon as Yang Kai pointed out the reality of the current situation, Mo Na Ye knew Yang Kai had managed to trick the Black Ink Clan into doing what he wanted again. He purposely sealed the Territory Gate to make them wary of the possibilities which led to them recalling all the Pseudo-Royal Lords who were out fighting. All of this left Mo Na Ye feeling both furious and bleak.
Yang Kai stood outside the Territory Gate and opened his arms, “Right now, I’m the one who has the upper hand. Your Pseudo-Royal Lords are retreating from all the different battlefields, but I can seal up the Territory Gate at any time and slaughter all of them. Even though you can force open the Territory Gate again, it’ll take some time. Moreover, I can seal up more than one Territory Gate!”
If Yang Kai headed off right now to kill the returning Pseudo-Royal Lords, he would undoubtedly seal off all the Territory Gates along the way. Mo Na Ye would not be able to go after him no matter how much he wanted to.
With Yang Kai’s present mastery over the Dao of Space and his current strength, it was laughably easy for him to seal off a Territory Gate. However, it would take the Black Ink Clan time and a lot of time and effort to break one open again.
The amount of work required of both parties was worlds apart. Yang Kai could use this to his advantage and the additional time he had thanks to that would be enough for the Black Ink Clan to lose a majority of their Pseudo-Royal Lords.
“What do you want?” Mo Na Ye asked darkly.
Yang Kai flashed a faint smile, “Now that’s how you do business.” It was easy to deal with someone as smart as Mo Na Ye. Yang Kai did not need to give a detailed explanation. Mo Na Ye could grasp the situation quickly which saved the need to waste one’s breath. If Yang Kai had been dealing with a hot-headed fool with a fiery temper instead, they might have come to blows by now.
That was not what Yang Kai wanted.
“As long as your new generation of Royal Lords hasn’t emerged, the Pseudo-Royal Lords are your strongest forces. You can’t afford to lose any of them; after all, you don’t have any more Innate Territory Lords, so every single Pseudo-Royal Lord who dies can’t be replaced,” Yang Kai slowly remarked, “How’s this? I won’t back you into a corner. For every single Pseudo-Royal Lord, I want a million sets of Fifth-Order materials. You can count how many Pseudo-Royal Lords you have remaining and give me the equivalent amount.”
“Are you insane!?” Mo Na Ye stared at Yang Kai in shock. He was thunderstruck by the Human’s attempt at open robbery.
Even though he only asked for Fifth-Order materials, a million sets was far too much. Furthermore, this was only in exchange for a single Pseudo-Royal Lord. At the very least, there were around 100 of them out on the battlefields, so wasn’t that like asking for 100 million sets of Fifth-Order materials?
Though Mo Na Ye knew Yang Kai would surely have high demands, he never expected the latter to be this greedy and he certainly could not accept it.
“These materials mean nothing to the Black Ink Clan, but the same can’t be said for the Pseudo-Royal Lords,” Yang Kai commented coolly, “You better think carefully before you answer.”
Mo Na Ye gritted his teeth, “It’s too much!” Truth be told, Mo Na Ye was more than willing to use these materials to exchange for the lives of the Pseudo-Royal Lords, but the price that Yang Kai asked for was too far outside the limits of acceptability. After all, the materials taken from them would be used to help the Humans grow stronger. The more the Black Ink Clan gave, the stronger the Humans could become.
All of a sudden, Mo Na Ye realised that this could very well be the real reason why Yang Kai showed up at the No-Return Pass!
Mo Na Ye knew of the Humans’ lack of resources. The Black Ink Clan had the entire Black Ink Battlefield to supply them with everything they needed to provide for their Army, but what did the Humans have? They only had the resources amassed by the major Sects throughout all their years of existence, but no matter how much they had saved, they would still use everything up someday.
When that happened, the Humans would no longer have any resources and the cultivation of their Masters would slow down dramatically. They might not even get any new Open Heaven Realm Masters anymore.
Therefore, the Humans had to find a way to overcome their dwindling supplies. This explained why Yang Kai named such an exorbitant price.
His earlier deal with the Black Ink Clan was merely his way of slowly setting up the stage and putting pressure on them…
Thinking about it now, Mo Na Ye realised that the earlier deal did not benefit the Black Ink Clan in any way; instead, they ended up allowing Yang Kai to take a Great Pass basically for free.
“That’s my only condition. I won’t accept any attempts to bargain. You have a stick of incense’s worth of time to discuss this. If you can’t accept it, then so be it. I will immediately head off to slaughter all your Pseudo-Royal Lords. Let me see how many of them manage to make it back alive. Oh. I’ll start with the Territory Gate that connects Shattered Heaven to the 3,000 Words. That’ll make for an excellent battlefield!” Yang Kai took a hard line and left no room for haggling.
Mo Na Ye’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets and the other Pseudo-Royal Lords were seething with rage as well. They kept throwing questioning looks at Mo Na Ye. It was as if they would rush forward to eviscerate Yang Kai the moment the Royal Lord gave the order.
Meanwhile, Mo Na Ye’s expression kept changing. Everyone could see that he was trying to quell his murderous intent. In the end, he did not give the order as he somehow kept a lid on his fury.
He was only able to control himself because he knew nothing would come out of it even if he did give the order to attack. They could not do anything to Yang Kai when the Territory Gate was right behind him. The moment the Black Ink Clan even tried to do anything, Yang Kai could immediately jump through the Territory Gate.
Truth be told, Mo Na Ye was not averse to giving away those materials in exchange for the safety of the Pseudo-Royal Lords; however, he was infuriated by the amount Yang Kai asked for and the refusal to let them bargain even when they did so earlier!
However, he could not deny that Yang Kai was targeting the Black Ink Clan’s weakness. If he did do as he said just now, a lot of Pseudo-Royal Lords would be meeting their doom.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords who were retreating from the battlefields had to pass through the Territory Gate at the Shattered Heaven. It was a passage that could not be avoided, and Yang Kai only had to lie in wait there. By doing so, he would surely be able to kill them off.
If the Black Ink Clan at the No-Return Pass wanted to head over to help the Pseudo-Royal Lords, they had to pass through the Barren Territory and travel across the entirety of the Shattered Heaven. Not only would the journey take them far longer than it took Yang Kai, but just the act of needing to break open the sealed Territory Gates would waste a lot of their time as well.
By the time they did manage to get there, it was probably going to be too late.
Furthermore, they had to leave some Masters at the No-Return Pass to stand guard there, so they could not send out all of their forces.
A single Human had the entire Black Ink Clan in a chokehold! All of the Black Ink Clansmen were drowning in humiliation.
After sending a resentful glare in Yang Kai’s direction, Mo Na Ye used his Divine Sense to discuss the deal with Mo Yu.
Yang Kai calmly waited by the Territory Gate without rushing them; after all, he did say he was giving them a stick of incense’s worth of time to discuss the deal. Moreover, he was certain they would agree to his demand. Although he was asking for a lot, it was not an amount they could not deliver. They simply did not want to hand over all these resources to the enemy.
However, materials came second when weighed against the lives of those Pseudo-Royal Lords.
Still, there were no guarantees in life. If the Black Ink Clan was going to be stubborn about it and refuse to accept his ridiculous demand, then he had no choice but to head on over and kill off the Pseudo-Royal Lords.
Now that he was using the Space-Time River to seal Pure Yang Pass, Yang Kai could not use it in battle, and without its help, it would not be easy for him to kill all those Pseudo-Royal Lords. Furthermore, the returning Pseudo-Royal Lords would be travelling in groups, which would make it even harder for him to kill them.
If he had to do it, he could only succeed a few times. As more and more Pseudo-Royal Lords returned from the various battlefields, he would have to stop. No matter how strong he was, there was still a limit to what he could accomplish alone.
[Hopefully, Mo Na Ye makes the wiser choice!] Yang Kai glanced at Mo Na Ye, and the latter just so happened to be glancing over at him too. Their eyes met and Yang Kai flashed the Royal Lord a cordial smile.
Mo Na Ye averted his eyes with a disgusted expression.
The discussion continued. At first, it was only between Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu, but soon, the Divine Senses of many other Pseudo-Royal Lords joined in. From their expressions and reactions, it was clear that they were split on the issue.
Yang Kai did not bother paying any attention to them and just remained ready to step into the Territory Gate at any given moment.
Before the time was up, the Black Ink Clan came to a decision.
Yang Kai gathered his thoughts and crossed his arms before calmly asking, “So?”
Mo Na Ye took a deep breath. He looked like someone who was weighed down by abject humiliation as he growled lowly, “We accept the trade you’ve asked for!”
Yang Kai’s brow twitched a little, “Is it too late for me to ask for more now?”
He had clearly underestimated the amount of resources the Black Ink Clan had. As it was, he thought he was already asking for the lion’s share of what they had. He even considered the possibility of compromising just a tiny bit if the Black Ink Clan insisted on haggling with him. [Who would’ve thought that they’d agree just like that?!]
After giving it some thought, it made sense. The Black Ink Clan had been in control of the 3,000 Worlds and the entire Black Ink Battlefield for millennia, which was more than enough time for them to gather an enormous amount of resources as they had more than enough underlings to do the mining.
Yang Kai felt an inexplicable sense of regret, like he had somehow suffered a great loss.
“Yang Kai!” Mo Na Ye roared, “Don’t go too far!”
Yang Kai waved his hand, “I was joking! It’s just a joke. Don’t get all worked up!”
Mo Na Ye threw him a baleful glare. It took quite some time before he could calm himself down again, “We need time to gather everything!”
“Three days!” Yang Kai had already considered this. He was not going to let the Black Ink Clan drag things out for too long, “I want to see everything in three days. Also, let me warn you right now. Don’t even bother trying to trick me. I know full well how many Pseudo-Royal Lords you have out there!”
“Three days isn’t enough time. You’re asking for a lot,” Mo Na Ye countered with a frown.
Yang Kai snorted, “All of your resources are right here. You just need to sort through them. You can do that in three days. But, of course, I don’t mind if you wish to drag it out even longer. However… if any of the Pseudo-Royal Lords return before I get what I want, don’t blame me for not showing any mercy!”
He was standing right outside the Territory Gate, so if the Pseudo-Royal Lords returned, they would surely pop up in front of him. How could any of them survive if he attacked them the moment they came through?
Mo Na Ye’s face twitched as he growled, “Fine. Three days!”
“You’re a decisive one!” Yang Kai complimented.
“We don’t have that many Fifth-Order materials, so we’ll make up for it with others. Naturally, we’ll make sure we meet the necessary amount,” Mo Na Ye added.
After all, even the Black Ink Clan could not bring out nearly 100 million sets of Fifth-Order materials. It made sense that they had to replace some of them with other kinds of materials.
Yang Kai was not going to make things difficult for them on this account, so he nodded before replying, “Sure, but nothing less than Fourth-Order materials. I won’t accept anything below that!”
At this point, the Humans rarely had any new Open Heaven Realm Masters beneath the Fourth-Order. The Star Boundary and the Myriad Monsters World, the two Open Heaven Realm Cradles, had boosted the floor of the Human Race greatly and allowed the Open Heaven Realm Masters to have a far better start than they did in the past.
Therefore, materials beneath Fourth-Order were not of much use to the Humans. On the other hand, the Black Ink Clan did not have the same requirements when it came to the Order of materials. Everything would be tossed inside the Black Ink Nest anyway, so it did not matter to them how low the quality was.
Mo Na Ye briefly mulled over Yang Kai’s demand before agreeing to it. He gave the Pseudo-Royal Lords a look and over a dozen of them returned to the No-Return Pass to start organising their resources.
Meanwhile, the other Black Ink Clansmen kept staring at Yang Kai from a distance.
Since there was nothing else to do, Yang Kai took out a table and a few chairs from his Small Universe, as well as a tea set. As he began preparing a pot of tea, he looked over at Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu, “Why don’t the two of you come over and have a seat?”
Mo Na Ye and Mo Yu exchanged glances and scoffed under their breaths before heading over in a flash and taking their seats in front of Yang Kai.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords who were still watching on from a distance could not resist circulating their power just in case they needed to provide some form of aid; however, the three most powerful Masters simply sat there in silence. No one showed any sign of wanting to start a fight.
It was a strange sight to behold and the Pseudo-Royal Lords nursed complicated feelings seeing it.
In just a few moments, the tea was ready. Yang Kai filled the cups in front of the two Royal Lords before pouring himself some tea as well. After taking a sip, he set his cup down and said, “I’m not much of a tea connoisseur; after all, I haven’t had the luxury of time to spare on such things. But, a lot of Humans are passionate about tea, many even considering it an art form. Ever since the Black Ink Clan’s invasion into the 3,000 Worlds, countless Humans were displaced from their homes and many of the Great Territories are now empty and lifeless. Perhaps many traditions such as this will die out as a result. What a pity.”
Mo Na Ye took a sip of the tea and responded curtly, “I prefer the taste of the Humans’ wines and liqueurs. Tea is a little bland.”
Yang Kai cocked his eyebrows, “You’re quite picky, aren’t you? Doesn’t matter to me whether you drink it or not. You know, considering the Black Ink Clan’s speciality of destroying any place you invade, if you truly take control over everything, you won’t even be able to drink tea anymore.”
Mo Na Ye set his cup down and staunchly declared, “In the future, Black Ink will be the only constant existence!”
Yang Kai raised his hand to stop Mo Na Ye, “Don’t bother spreading your propaganda. We’ll never see eye to eye and we’ll never be on the same side. You’re just a bunch of invaders who’re running amok in someone else’s home.”
“When everything first came into existence, the Divine Spirits were the ones in power,” Mo Na Ye coolly retorted, “Then, it was the Monster Race who ruled before the power finally fell into the hands of the Human Race. As the years go by, control of the Universe switches between different Races, there is no true preordained owner. If the Humans can be in charge, then so can the Black Ink Clan.”
Yang Kai side-eyed him, “You know a thing or two, huh? There was balance and progress in the Universe during the reigns of the Divine Spirits, Monster Race, and the Human Race, but if the Black Ink Clan does succeed, what can you bring about? There will be nothing but destruction and desolation. If everything else is gone, do you think the Black Ink Clan will survive? You’re just digging your own graves, and yet you make it sound so wonderful by calling it the only constant existence! Since you know so much, let me ask you this. Do you know how the Divine Spirits came into existence?”
Mo Na Ye frowned, “Do you?”
“Of course!” Yang Kai declared with a smug smile.
However, he did not give Mo Na Ye any time to ask any questions as he swiftly added, “But, I’m not going to tell you!”
Mo Na Ye could not resist rolling his eyes, but his temper did not flare up.
Yang Kai continued, “The Black Ink Clan came about because of Mo. Its thoughts and beliefs are what determine your actions and choices. Even though Mo is incredibly powerful, it was suppressed and sealed inside the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction all of those years ago. Unable to escape, it has been stuck there ever since; however, it doesn’t seem to do well with loneliness. Nevertheless, it’s like a frog that has been stuck inside a well and thinks that what it sees is everything there is to see and know. It cannot possibly fathom that there’s so much more out there that it has no idea about.”
*Peng!*
Mo Yu, who had been silent the whole time, slammed his cup onto the table and glared at Yang Kai, “How dare you question the Supreme One!”
Yang Kai side-eyed him, “What’s wrong with you? Getting all worked up over a few words I said? What gives you the audacity to lash out at me after drinking my tea, huh?!”
Mo Yu had a stormy expression as he retorted, “Don’t think you’re invincible just because you’re a Ninth-Order Master now, Yang Kai. Perhaps Mo Na Ye and I can’t stand against you, but can you stand against the Supreme One’s Soul Clone?”
Naturally, he was referring to the Black Ink Giant Spirit Gods.
Yang Kai snorted, “Why would I need to stand against them? They have their own opponents.”
Mo Yu could not think of a retort to that.
Yang Kai pursed his lips, “Forget it. I can’t be bothered to talk about these things with you. Why would we need to cultivate if everything could be resolved through debates?” He cocked his eyebrows at Mo Na Ye, “Isn’t that right?”
It was clear that Mo Na Ye did not want to dwell on this topic either, so he changed the subject, “We’ll give you the materials in three days, but I have a small request as well.”
“Go on,” Yang Kai raised his cup of tea to his lips before swirling it around.
“You need to remain here until all the Pseudo-Royal Lords have returned to the No-Return Pass before you can leave.”
Mo Na Ye had dealt with Yang Kai many times, and though this Human had never broken a promise he made, Mo Na Ye could not be sure that he could trust Yang Kai this time. If Yang Kai left right after taking all the materials with him, he would certainly head over to kill those Pseudo-Royal Lords. To avoid that, they could only allow Yang Kai to leave when all of the Pseudo-Royal Lords had returned.
He was worried that Yang Kai would not agree to his request and was even considering withholding a portion of the materials and only handing them over to Yang Kai once the Pseudo-Royal Lords arrived safe and sound; thus, he did not expect Yang Kai to agree without any fuss, “I was going to do that anyway, even if you didn’t ask it of me.”
Startled, Mo Na Ye gave him a blank stare, [Why would he do that?]
With a faint smile, Yang Kai explained, “I have to see whether the number of materials you give matches the number of Pseudo-Royal Lords who come back. It’s no issue if you give more than what we agreed upon, but if you give me less… Heh heh. I won’t be pleased.”
Mo Na Ye’s expression darkened as he growled, “You can rest assured that I know even better than you just how many Pseudo-Royal Lords there are out there. You won’t be getting any less than what we agreed.”
“That’s good then,” Yang Kai nodded and refilled Mo Na Ye’s cup, but he ignored Mo Yu and the latter’s expression became a little unpleasant.
Mo Na Ye chuckled and shook his head. He personally topped up Mo Yu’s cup before letting out a heavy sigh, “The advantage we had for thousands of years is all gone now. Henceforth, the Humans will be able to easily reclaim the 3,000 Worlds.”
Previously, it would not have been easy for the Humans to reclaim the 3,000 Worlds. There was no telling how long it would take for them to go on fighting to reclaim each Great Territory one by one, not to mention all the effort and the sacrifices that needed to be made as well.
However, due to the overwhelming threat that the Black Ink Clan was up against in the form of Yang Kai, they were forced to withdraw all of their most powerful Masters lest the Human seized his chance to eliminate them.
Due to this, the Black Ink Clan Army out on the battlefields would not be able to put up a fight against the Humans, and the Black Ink Clan did not plan on sending out any reinforcements either. Therefore, the Humans simply needed to put in a bit of time and they would be able to reclaim the rest of the 3,000 Worlds.
Yang Kai scoffed, “So what if we reclaim them? The 3,000 Worlds are nothing but tattered ruins left behind by the Black Ink Clan. It’s merely a symbolic victory for us as the 3,000 Worlds won’t be of any help to us.”
After many millennia of damage caused by the Black Ink Clan’s occupation, all of the Universe Worlds in all the Great Territories had died out a long time ago. All the resources had been stripped and the 3,000 Worlds were nothing more than empty ruins. Even if the Humans reclaimed them, they would be of much use.
“That’s true, but the Humans would not be forfeiting an easy victory.”
Yang Kai nodded, “I assume that in the future, the Humans will have control over the 3,000 Worlds while the Black Ink Clan continues to hold the No-Return Pass.” Now that the subject came up, Yang Kai grew curious, “Back when the Black Ink Clan invaded the No-Return Pass, how did you manage to enter the Barren Territory?”
There was only one Territory Gate, and when the Humans retreated to the Barren Territory, they would have already set up an ambush at the Territory Gate. It would not have been easy for the Black Ink Clan to invade the Barren Territory. Even if they kept sending their Army through, the Humans would still decimate them with ease.
Yang Kai did not take part in that battle and he did not seek out much information after the fact, so he was curious to know how the Black Ink Clan could break past the Humans’ defences and launch a successful invasion into the Barren Territory.
“It’s all thanks to the Supreme One’s Soul Clone, of course,” Mo Na Ye replied.
“I presumed as much,” Yang Kai commented after gaining clarity.
Only the presence of a Black Ink Giant Spirit God would have allowed the Black Ink Clan to accomplish what they did. The Black Ink Giant Spirit God was the one who barged into the Barren Territory and occupied a sizable chunk of the Human Race’s combat power, which allowed the Black Ink Clan to send their Army in.
“Humans don’t have a third Giant Spirit God. It will be difficult for us to invade the No-Return Pass,” Yang Kai stroked his chin as he seemed to vex over the conundrum.
Mo Yu’s brow twitched. They were all mortal enemies, so Yang Kai was being rather haughty for making that comment right in front of them.
Mo Na Ye had a knowing smirk on his face, “Brother Yang, you probably know of a secret passage that leads from the 3,000 Worlds straight into the Black Ink Battlefield, right?”
This was something the Black Ink Clan deduced a long time ago; after all, Yang Kai made frequent trips to the No-Return Pass without passing through the Territory Gate. Instead, he would simply pop up all of a sudden on the Black Ink Battlefield. Only the existence of a secret passage could explain how he managed to move around.
They had tried to locate the secret passage, but after all these years, they had not found anything.
In Mo Na Ye’s eyes, Yang Kai was simply trying to put on an act by saying it would be tough for the Humans to invade the No-Return Pass. With that secret passage of his, the Humans could easily gather on the Black Ink Battlefield before laying siege to the No-Return Pass.
The Black Ink Clan would surely suffer devastating losses if they did not guard against that possibility.
[Yang Kai’s taking us for fools with that remark of his!] Mo Na Ye was not about to believe him!
“Now that things have come to this, there’s only one thing I wish to ask of you, Brother Yang. Which Great Territory inside the 3,000 Worlds is the entrance of that secret passage located?” Mo Na Ye asked with great sincerity. This question had confounded him for years now. He did not ask where the exit was as he knew Yang Kai would not be telling him that, so he simply asked about the entrance.
Yang Kai flashed him a faint smile, “What a coincidence. I have a question to ask you too.”
“Go ahead, Brother Yang.”
“Is your Supreme One waking up soon? When is it going to wake up?”
Back then, Mo sunk into a deep slumber when the hidden hand Mu left behind had been triggered. It had been thousands of years since then and Yang Kai estimated that Mo would be awakening soon. However, the Old Tree had sunk into a deep slumber too, so the fact that Yang Kai could not head over to the Primordial Heavens Source Grand Restriction to check on things whenever he wanted was giving him a headache.
The three Masters, one Human and two from the Black Ink Clan, sat there in the void staring at each other in total silence.
“The tea’s getting cold,” Mo Na Ye quipped with a chuckle to gloss over the earlier topic; obviously, he did not wish to answer Yang Kai’s question.
His question did not affect much. Even if Yang Kai exposed where the entrance to the secret passage was, the Black Ink Clan could not do anything about it anymore. On the other hand, Yang Kai was asking about highly confidential information of absolute importance to the Black Ink Clan. Mo Na Ye was not going to answer that question.
However, Mo Na Ye did not expect Yang Kai to snatch the cup out of his hands and even stuff the table back inside his Small Universe. Yang Kai got up and made it clear their presence was no longer welcome, “You’ve had your tea so you can scram now.”
Mo Na Ye was dumbstruck, [You’re the one who invited us over for tea and yet you’re chasing us off now? How can your attitude change faster than flipping the pages of a book?]
Nevertheless, despite being displeased, Mo Na Ye did not want to trifle with Yang Kai over such inconsequential matters. He glanced at Mo Yu and the two Royal Lords went back to the No-Return Pass, leaving Yang Kai alone by the Territory Gate.
Three days later, they were done gathering the materials and Mo Na Ye personally handed over the Space Rings to Yang Kai.
They were giving over so much that they had to use over 100 Space Rings.
Yang Kai checked every single one of the Space Rings as Mo Na Ye reminded him, “Don’t forget about our agreement, Brother Yang.”
“Don’t worry. I’m someone who keeps my word. In all our years of dealings, have I ever reneged on something I said?” Yang Kai replied.
[That’s true, but things are no longer the same now.] Mo Na Ye was still a little uneasy.
After seeing the expression on Mo Na Ye’s face, Yang Kai suggested, “How’s this? I’ll step aside and you can stand guard at the Territory Gate. That way, I won’t be able to leave through it.”
Mo Na Ye solemnly nodded, “That’s exactly what I was thinking too!” He came over because he wanted Yang Kai to do just that.
Yang Kai pursed his lips, “At the end of the day, you still don’t trust me. Don’t we have a relationship that includes surviving a narrow brush with death? I’m sorely disappointed by the attitude you’re taking right now!”
[How can you call it a relationship when it includes surviving a narrow brush with death? You were the one who nearly killed me!] Mo Na Ye griped to himself. He could not avoid recalling his embarrassing past.
His head was throbbing as he replied, “It’s not that I don’t trust you. It’s just that I have to consider the bigger…”
“Yeah, yeah I get it!” Yang Kai cut him off. He could not be bothered to waste any more of his breath. He was in a good mood over the fact that he managed to extort a massive amount of materials from the Black Ink Clan, so he was not going to bother with Mo Na Ye and readily stood aside.
The Black Ink Clan had clearly been prepared for this. Nearly 20 Pseudo-Royal Lords immediately flew over to Mo Na Ye to block the Territory Gate.
Soon, Yang Kai finished taking stock of all the materials and put them away with great satisfaction.
This time, the Black Ink Clan did not try to shortchange Yang Kai. It was quite the contrary as they gave him more than what he expected. He assumed it was because they did not want to give him an excuse to find fault with them.
Meanwhile, Mo Na Ye let out a small exhale of relief when he saw that Yang Kai did not leave the moment he was done checking.
Even though Yang Kai had allowed Mo Na Ye and a group of Pseudo-Royal Lords to stand guard at the Territory Gate, there was still the secret passage between the 3,000 Worlds and the Black Ink Battlefield. Yang Kai did not need to use the Territory Gate to leave, and if he had chosen to do just that, the Black Ink Clan would not be able to stop him.
Though it was a pain to deal with Yang Kai, there was one thing that Mo Na Ye was glad about. As long as the situation wasn’t harmful to the Human Race, Yang Kai never went back on his word.
Time passed and several days later, the Territory Gate began rippling with the surge of Space Principles.
The numerous Pseudo-Royal Lords who had been standing around waiting grew alert as they checked the Territory Gate and saw silhouettes popping out.
There were a total of 11 of them with imposing auras which made it clear they were all Pseudo-Royal Lords.
Yang Kai glanced at them as well and spotted a few familiar faces. He immediately figured out where they had just come from.
These were the Pseudo-Royal Lords who fled E-5 Territory.
The Black Ink Clan had chosen the battlefield at E-5 Territory to be the place where they were going to prove their strength. They wanted to crush the Red Flame Army that was fighting there, so prior to Yang Kai’s appearance, E-5 Territory had the most Pseudo-Royal Lords, and it had been too many for the Red Flame Army to handle.
However, Yang Kai came to the Red Flame Army’s aid and they managed to kill eight Pseudo-Royal Lords. The rest of them knew the situation did not look good for them so they fled at once, and after nearly three months of travelling, they finally got back to the No-Return Pass.
Truth be told, they were quite fortunate. After leaving E-5 Territory, Yang Kai did try to track them down, but he could not find out in which direction they went.
Throughout this whole time, the Pseudo-Royal Lords fearfully travelled as stealthily as possible. They did not even try to get in touch with the No-Return Pass, except for the initial report they sent back just before fleeing to report on the change in the situation in E-5 Territory.
If they wanted to contact the No-Return Pass, they would have to find one of the Black Ink Clan’s forward outposts across the various Great Territories, but those places were not all that safe.
However, when the Pseudo-Royal Lords got back to the No-Return Pass and found a group of Masters from the Black Ink Clan, including Mo Na Ye, waiting right in front of the Territory Gate, they were startled and confused as they did not know what was happening.
The leader of the group of Pseudo-Royal Lords had an ashamed expression as he went forward and greeted them. He filled them in on the situation that had broken out at E-5 Territory just before they left and went on a rant decrying the many heinous deeds committed by Yang Kai; however, as he spoke, he started getting a strange feeling, so he turned his head and glanced in a particular direction before his jaw dropped…
The other returning Pseudo-Royal Lords followed suit, and when they saw that figure standing in the distance, they grew agitated.
Yang Kai was standing there with his arms crossed as he gave the Pseudo-Royal Lords a taunting look. Chills ran down their spines, but they were entirely confused.
[What’s going on? Why is the killing star here? If he’s here, why aren’t they fighting against him? Why do they seem to be getting along with him…]
“That’s enough. You may go and rest. E-5 Territory has been lost and you’re not to blame for it,” Mo Na Ye waved his hand lethargically. The returning Pseudo-Royal Lords stood down, eyeing Yang Kai with strange expressions, now and then.
They had to check with a Pseudo-Royal Lord they were acquainted with before they found out what had recently taken place here.
In less than three months, Yang Kai attacked the No-Return Pass twice and exhibited his staggering strength before forcing the Black Ink Clan to comply with some of his demands.
However, he was still here now because they had an agreement with him. He was not here to cause trouble.
Upon hearing this, the Pseudo-Royal Lords who just came back reacted with contorted expressions that reflected their complicated emotions…
More and more Pseudo-Royal Lords came through the Territory Gate. These were the ones who had received the order to retreat from all the Great Territory battlefields. Not only were there Pseudo-Royal Lords, but a large number of Territory Lords and Feudal Lords as well.
Though, there was not a single one weaker than the Feudal Lords.
Since they were fleeing for their lives, those who were not strong enough could not keep up; furthermore, as the more powerful Masters fled the battlefields, the Black Ink Clan still needed some forces to keep the Human Race Army occupied.
These returning Masters all jumped in fright the moment they spotted Yang Kai, but after finding out what happened, they were filled with humiliation and discontent.
It would not be wrong to say the present situation resulted entirely from the actions of a single Human. It was Yang Kai who forced the Black Ink Clan to give up on the 3,000 Worlds. Just as Mo Na Ye had lamented earlier, everything the Black Ink Clan accomplished throughout several millennia had vanished in an instant.
This continued for two months, and once the final group arrived back at the No-Return Pass, Mo Na Ye finally exhaled and turned to Yang Kai, who had been waiting the whole time, “All done, Brother Yang.”
Yang Kai eyed him coldly, “You’re done, but I’m not.”
“What do you mean, Brother Yang?” Mo Na Ye pretended to exclaim in shock.
Yang Kai gritted his teeth and said, “The resources you gave me were only in exchange for the lives of the Pseudo-Royal Lords. It did not include this many Territory Lords and Feudal Lords!”
Though he had known that some of the Territory Lords and Feudal Lords would have fled alongside the Pseudo-Royal Lords, he did not think there would be this many of them! This meant that even if the Humans emerged victorious across the 12 battlefields and wiped out all of the Black Ink Clan Armies, it was still not enough to deal a severe blow to the Black Ink Clan’s overall combat power.
Mo Na Ye chuckled, “What do you want to do then?”
“The price needs to go up!” Yang Kai spat out word by word.
Mo Na Ye shrugged, “Can’t help you there!”
He showed no fear; after all, all Masters of the Black Ink Clan had returned and Yang Kai could not blackmail him with anything now, so he did not need to comply with Yang Kai’s demands.
Yang Kai glared at Mo Na Ye, and after a while, he scoffed, “You better watch your back. Don’t let me get my hands on you!”
Although he was powerful enough to mess around at the No-Return Pass, there were too many Masters gathered here right now. If he did try to do something, it would not be as easy for him as it had been back then. This was the reason why Mo Na Ye had grown a spine and took a tougher stance now.
All of the Black Ink Clan’s most powerful Masters were now gathered at the No-Return Pass. Even if all of the Ninth-Order Masters came over, there was no guarantee that they could achieve anything, let alone a lone Yang Kai.
[There are too many Pseudo-Royal Lords…]
“Move!” Yang Kai snarled.
Mo Na Ye turned around and waved his hand at the Pseudo-Royal Lords gathered in front of the Territory Gate. They swiftly retreated and cleared a path between them. Mo Na Ye gestured to Yang Kai, “Go ahead, Brother Yang!”
Yang Kai snorted and took a step forward without any hesitation. In a flash, he was right outside the Territory Gate.
At the very next moment, a low growl rang out.
“Now!”
All at once, a fiery storm of attacks shot out from all directions and rained down on Yang Kai who could not even say anything before he was shoved into the Territory Gate. His muffled roar rang out, “I’ll kill you, Mo Na Ye! Mark my words!”
Mo Na Ye’s expression was grim as he stared at the Territory Gate that was slowly swirling. This attack that was launched at the very last moment had not been an attempt to kill Yang Kai. He knew full well it was impossible to kill Yang Kai so easily; he simply wanted to get Yang Kai to leave as soon as possible. Perhaps they managed to injure him just a little, but not to the point where it made any difference.
Then, Mo Na Ye turned his eyes back on the Pseudo-Royal Lords and sternly commanded, “Remember this humiliation. One day, we’ll pay it back many times over!”
The Pseudo-Royal Lords agreed in unison. The humiliation and fury that coloured their expressions made them look rather grotesque.
Mo Na Ye looked back at the Territory Gate again. Just moments ago, it was still slowly swirling as usual, but now, it was as frozen as a lake in winter. He knew it meant that Yang Kai had used his power to seal up the Territory Gate from the other side.
A beam of light swept into the Universe Fragment that housed the Supreme Headquarters, and before the Human landed, his cries could already be heard, “E-5 Territory has been liberated!”
The Humans didn’t have a method to instantly relay information like the Black Ink Clan could with their Black Ink Nests. Also, the frontlines were very far from the Supreme Headquarters, which was why the news of victory in E-5 Territory had just arrived.
In the early days, the Supreme Headquarters was the centre of the several Great Territory Battlefields that the Humans fought hard to defend. The distance between battlefields wasn’t that great back then, so news travelled quickly. However, with the increased length of the frontlines, the 12 Human Race Armies had to move forward while the Supreme Headquarters stayed behind; hence, communication between them became extremely slow.
Previously, Mi Jing Lun had thought about moving the Supreme Headquarters to the frontlines, but he was only an Eighth-Order Master. If they decided to move the Supreme Headquarters forward, the Black Ink Clan would certainly target them. If the Pseudo-Royal Lords decided to launch a sneak attack, the Supreme Headquarters wouldn’t be able to survive.
When news of their victory arrived, Mi Jing Lun was discussing important matters with his peers at the Supreme Headquarters. At this moment, he was already a Ninth-Order Master!
He was originally a veteran Eighth-Order Master with a solid heritage, but due to the Open Heaven Realm Method’s restrictions, his limit was at the peak of the Eighth-Order, which was why he hadn’t made any progress for many years.
With the Supreme Grade Open Heaven Pill brought back by Yang Kai however, he was able to break through his limit.
After becoming a Ninth-Order Master, Mi Jing Lun finally had the qualifications to move the Supreme Headquarters to the frontlines. He was now discussing with his peers which Great Territory they should move into to better communicate with the 12 Armies.
When everyone heard the excited screams, they were stunned. Despite having expected this result, they were still elated.
With Yang Kai assisting the Red Flame Army in E-5 Territory, ending the battle there wouldn’t be much of a hassle, but everyone was curious about how big of a victory they had achieved.
A while later, a figure swept in from outside the Main Hall and happily reported, “Sirs, we have completely taken over E-5 Territory!”
Mi Jing Lun, who was standing around a table full of documents, nodded lightly and smiled, “Let me have a look.”
The messenger presented the report, and Mi Jing Lun checked it with his Divine Sense. Soon, a shocked expression appeared on his face as he stammered, “How…”
Although he knew that the Red Flame Army would certainly achieve great success with Yang Kai overseeing the situation, he wasn’t expecting the numbers to be so exaggerated.
“Supreme Commander Mi, how are the results?”
The others were looking at Mi Jing Lun expectantly. When they saw his expression change, they felt their hearts sink. [Didn’t we win? What’s with the shocked expression on Supreme Commander Mi’s face? Did the Red Flame Army suffer many casualties?]
At that instant, the crowd was feeling nervous.
With a bitter laugh, Mi Jing Lun said, “I’ve underestimated him still. See for yourselves.”
While he spoke, he gave the others the after-action report. The crowd immediately took turns scanning the record, and soon, each one of them looked shocked while secretly being amazed by Yang Kai.
The report showed the battle between the Red Flame Army and Black Ink Clan was fierce and tragic. Even the Eastern Army Commander almost died in that struggle. Thankfully, Yang Kai appeared out of nowhere and saved the situation by using a mysterious Dao Strength River to trap several Pseudo-Royal Lords, rescuing Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others and forcing the Black Ink Clan Army to retreat.
Afterwards, Yang Kai went to the Black Ink Clan’s base camp alone and captured two more Pseudo-Royal Lords…
In the end, eight Pseudo-Royal Lords died, shocking and terrifying the ones still alive so greatly that they all escaped through the Territory Gate.
After all the Pseudo-Royal Lords were either dead or had escaped, the Black Ink Clan Army lost all will to fight and retreated from E-5 Territory. Once again, Yang Kai attacked alone, and like crushing dry weeds and smashing rotten wood, he passed through the Black Ink Clan Army and used his Space Secret Technique to seal the Territory Gate. At that point, the Black Ink Clansmen that had yet to retreat were like turtles hiding in their own shells!
Meanwhile, Yang Kai also left E-5 Territory.
Although Yang Kai had left, the Black Ink Clan Army couldn’t stand a chance against the Red Flame Army without Pseudo-Royal Lords overseeing the situation, so the Humans in E-5 Territory began hunting down the remnant Black Ink Clan soldiers and within a month had wiped them out.
The military report was quite short, but every detail inside was astonishing. If the people at the Supreme Headquarters hadn’t known that it was impossible to fake anything on the battlefield, they would have suspected that the Red Flame Army had doctored their military report to gain Military Merits.
But seeing that Yang Kai had helped them, these results seemed reasonable.
When Yang Kai set off to E-5 Territory to assist the Red Flame Army, they knew the battle there would end in their favour, so how could they not have thought about this result?
Yang Kai had killed eight Pseudo-Royal Lords in just two attacks. Such a terrifying accomplishment was impossible for other Ninth-Order Masters to achieve.
That realization traumatized the rest of the Pseudo-Royal Lords, causing them to run. Without the Pseudo-Royal Lords, the Black Ink Clan Army was an easy target!
Moreover, Yang Kai had sealed the Territory Gate, so the Black Ink Clan left in E-5 Territory had no choice but to fight till the end. That was what caused the shocking number of kills in the report.
One person alone could change the entire situation on a battlefield and lead the Army to achieve such glorious success. It was indeed marvellous!
“Where is Junior Brother Yang now?” After calming down, Mi Jing Lun looked at the messenger.
The messenger shook his head, “Senior Yang left after sealing the Territory Gate. Sir Zuo Qiu said that before Senior Yang left, he seemed like he was about to go to the No-Return Pass and said something about taking something back.”
“Going to the No-Return Pass to get something…” Mi Jing Lun felt his brow twitch. [That brat, does he think he can do whatever he wants because he’s strong now?]
The No-Return Pass was different from before. Two Royal Lords and several Pseudo-Royal Lords were overseeing that place. Even Ninth-Order Masters wouldn’t easily go there, but considering that it was Yang Kai heading there, Mi Jing Lun wasn’t too worried.
He didn’t know what Yang Kai was going to retrieve from No-Return Pass, but he knew Yang Kai had a purpose in everything he did.
While thinking so, Mi Jing Lun suddenly became serious while he thought about something.
The Black Ink Clan could use Black Ink Nests to quickly send out information, which was something the Humans didn’t have. After Yang Kai’s appearance in E-5 Territory, the Black Ink Clan lost the battle and paid a huge price. News of eight Pseudo-Royal Lords dying and the rest escaping would have already reached the No-Return Pass.
More importantly, it wouldn’t take long before the Masters of the Black Ink Clan on the other battlefields would receive this news…
If Mi Jing Lun’s estimations were right, the Pseudo-Royal Lords from other battlefields might have already found out about the situation in E-5 Territory.
At the thought of that, Mi Jing Lun jumped to his feet and ordered, “Hurry! Send orders to the Azure Sun Army. No, send orders to the Shocking Thunder, Burning Moon, Twin Instrument, Azure Dawn, and Jade Cicada Armies. Tell them to attack the Black Ink Clan regardless of their behaviour and don’t relent even if Pseudo-Royal Lords appear!”
Immediately, a herald went out to relay the orders.
Mi Jing Lun frowned and let out a dissatisfied groan, “Let’s hope we’re not too late!”
Then, he turned to the messenger and asked, “Did Zuo Qiu Yang Hua and the others mention what their next steps would be after taking E-5 Territory?”
The messenger replied, “After discussion, the Sirs decided to send reinforcements to the nearest Azure Dawn Army. If I’m not mistaken, the Red Flame Army should have already arrived.”
Nodding, Mi Jing Lun said, “That’s good. At the very least, the Black Ink Clan there wouldn’t be much of a problem.”
Now that both Armies had gathered together, the enemies couldn’t defeat the Azure Dawn Army. According to Mi Jing Lun’s estimations, the Black Ink Clan then would suffer a tragic end.
“Supreme Commander Mi, why are we only sending out orders to those five Armies? Don’t we need to inform the ones with Ninth-Order Masters?” One of Mi Jing Lun’s peers asked.
Mi Jing Lun explained, “Ninth-Order Masters have sharp senses, so they will immediately detect any strange changes in the Black Ink Clan Army and won’t need us to warn them, but the Armies without Ninth-Order Masters might not be able to detect the change in the situation and would still have to be wary of confronting the Black Ink Clan Army.”
“The change Supreme Commander Mi is referring to is…”
Mi Jing Lun quickly said, “Those Pseudo-Royal Lords might have already run!”
“What?” Someone exclaimed in shock, but the rest soon realised why Mi Jing Lun would say that.
The Black Ink Clan had paid a tragic price during the battle in E-5 Territory and even lost eight Pseudo-Royal Lords, the Masters which currently gave them the greatest advantage. From the recent military report, it was clear that Pseudo-Royal Lords didn’t stand much of a chance against Yang Kai, and Yang Kai had the ability to seal the Territory Gates and cut off the Black Ink Clan’s escape routes.
How could the Black Ink Clan not be worried about such an enemy?
Yang Kai had only joined one battle in E-5 Territory yet almost wiped out the entire Black Ink Clan Army there. So, what if he appeared in the other Great Territories?
No Pseudo-Royal Lord had the guts or confidence to face Yang Kai head-on. Even if they could muster up the courage to fight with Yang Kai, the always prudent Mo Na Ye wouldn’t let them do so and would instead order them to save their strength and immediately return to the No-Return Pass.
Therefore, all of the Pseudo-Royal Lords at the frontlines should have already evacuated.
The six Human Race Armies with Ninth-Order Masters would have noticed such movements, but the rest might not have. If the Black Ink Clan acted like they were ready to start a fight, the Humans might not dare to act recklessly, giving the Pseudo-Royal Lords the time and opportunity to flee.
The Pseudo-Royal Lords had contributed a lot in the battles on each battlefield, which was why the Black Ink Clan could stand a chance against the Humans. Now that they were gone, the Black Ink Clan had lost their capital to fight against the Human Race Armies. Hence, now was the best time for the Humans to make the most of this situation.
Everyone else finally understood why Mi Jing Lun would give out such an order.
This was the drawback of increasing the distance to the frontlines. The relay of information was too slow, so naturally coordination, relaying orders, and even the dispatching of reinforcements were equally slow. As the situation in each battlefield was ever-changing, there were many times when sending out information in time could decide the fate of a critical battle.
Luckily, Mi Jing Lun had broken through to the Ninth-Order, and they could finally move the Supreme Headquarters towards the frontlines so that such situations wouldn’t happen again.
It had been thousands of years since the Black Ink Clan invaded the 3,000 Worlds, plunging the Great Territories into misery. Now, it was finally time to take back their land!
Even though the Black Ink Clan had left behind a huge mess, this was the place the Humans had lived and thrived for countless years.
While looking into the distance, though Mi Jing Lun looked calm, he was actually excited inside. He could foresee that the Human Race would be able to get back their lost land in a matter of years. Originally, he was ready for a prolonged war with the Black Ink Clan, so he didn’t expect the situation to change so abruptly.
And all of this was actually because of one person.